And After All, You're My Wonderwall
by ItsAlwaysGoingToBeYou
Summary: The sequel to "I'm Sorry That I Couldn't Get to You" follows Emily's and Alison's journey as they deal with her pregnancy. Emily heads off to Stanford, but what does Alison's future hold? Will the child be the girls' downfall strengthen their bond? Will Alison get the chance to follow Emily to California and live out the life they dreamed together or will everything fall apart?
1. Chapter 1

_**Prologue**_

_**"I wish this was a joke, Killer." Alison replied, knowing that using Emily's nickname would make the brunette see that she wasn't joking. "I don't know why this had to happen now when everything was perfect." A fresh set of tears rolled down Alison's cheeks and she felt like she couldn't breath. "Emily, I...I'm...I went to the store but I didn't get medicine. I took the tests. I took five of them. They were all positive. I...I'm pregnant." She finally spoke the words that she'd desperately held inside in hopes of keeping it from being a reality.**_

_**"Holy shit." Emily mumbled out only loud enough for herself to hear. Was Alison serious? She hoped not. Pregnant, at her age, at their age, and engaged.. what the hell was going on. This all had to be a joke. As soon as Emily head her nickname, it all sunk in. Alison really was pregnant, and Emily had no idea what to say. She desperately wanted to go and comfort the blonde, but she didn't have it in her, not right now. Instead, she simply got up, a look of utter disappointment taking over face. How typical of Alison to not use protection when she was with a guy, and Noel of all that. She shook her head and turned around, her back to Alison, words wanting to escape her lips, however she didn't know what to say. "No." was all that escaped her lips. "NO, no. Tell me you're joking Alison, tell me this is all some sort of joke, please, I'm begging you. I-I can't do this right now." She finally spoke the words. "I can't do this." She finally turned around, her pale face looking at Alison, who had been in tears for the last few minutes. "You.. this... what." You could tell that Emily was sad, angry, confused... and especially disappointed. Even though Alison was probably just as confused as Emily, she just couldn't let it sink in.**_

_**The brunette simply stood there, her eyes on Alison's icy blue ones, it was as though the energy had been completely sucked out of both of them. Their relationship had actually been okay, other than the fact that Emily's mom had disowned her when she found out about the two being together, and now, Alison being pregnant? Emily wasn't even sure if she could support the weight of handling Alison during her pregnancy, and who would support the both of them? No job, no house to call their own. what if Mr. DiLaurentis disowned Alison because of this? They'd both have no place to go. The only solution Emily could come up with was to cut ties with the blonde, and it killed her to just think of this. "I..." She walked over to Alison, tears forming in her own eyes. She placed her hand in Alison's, already regretting her decision. "I told you that no matter what, I'd love you and stay by your side, but this.. - I feel like a piece of me died, it's not what I had in mind.. I can't do this, this isn't my responsibility. I just - .." She ran out of words to say, her ring falling over the palm of Alison's hand. And just like that, Emily ended the engagement. She knew it was like abandoning Alison, but this was all spinning out of proportion, and it wasn't her fault at all. She wasn't the one to get Alison pregnant, and as much as she loved the blonde, she needed to breathe, this was Noel's responsibility, and Alison's, it felt as though nothing could get worse. Emily simply thought to herself. "At the end of the day, life's a lesson." Which was true, maybe she was meant to fall in love with Alison only to have it end like this.**_

_**Alison could feel her heart breaking with the way Emily reacted. She closed her eyes and thought in her mind to herself. "Please be a nightmare. Please don't be real. Wake up Alison. Wake up from this and be beside Emily in bed at home." All the thoughts swirled in her head as she begged for this whole night to be unreal. But when she finally opened her eyes, it was still the same scene in front of her. The brunette hadn't said a word and she knew without a doubt she'd once again let Emily down. Her stomach was in knots and she was clearly having trouble breathing. She didn't know which was worse, the sickness and feeling of nausea from the pregnancy or the sinking heart feeling she had by seeing the look on Emily's face.**_

_**"I ruined everything. I'll never forgive myself. Why...Why me?" Alison mumbled out through her tears. She didn't even bother to wipe away the tears streaming down her face. She sat down on her front steps and placed her hands on her knees, just staring at them like they could change the situation. Finally she looked over at Emily, daring to look into her eyes, though the emotions she saw in them killed her. She braced herself for what Emily had to say but even Alison couldn't prepare herself for those words. The blonde took the ring and burst into tears. "You're really leaving me, Emily?" She choked out but the blonde couldn't even manage to get up. She'd never felt so broken in all her life. All because of her stupid drunken mistake, she was paying for the rest of her life. It was like maybe this was punishment for all the horrid things she'd done in her past. She thought that maybe she just wasn't meant to be happy, that maybe she didn't deserve a happy ending.**_

* * *

><p>Emily truly was dying inside, she felt as though she practically had nothing left to live for. Emily turned around, her back to Alison's face; taking small breaths, she tried to regain her composure however she just couldn't stop herself from crying even more. Before leaving, she lifted her shoulders just a little, managing to speak the words that she knew would break Alison even more; but she had to say them. "You disappointed me Alison." She shook her head, making sure her phone was in her pockets, she didn't bother grabbing her stuff from the car nor the DiLaurentis house, she simply walked away, her ring finger empty, her heart broken, her soul in thousands of pieces, and her emotions a huge wreck.<p>

Alison hadn't even bothered to pay attention to anything else around. She'd been crying for what seemed like hours, though it was only a few minutes. But her heart ached and she felt like nothing would ever be right again. She hated herself, she hated Noel, but most of all she simply hated that Emily wasn't going to be around her anymore. And then she heard those words and suddenly her head was spinning. She felt like she was going to throw up and pass out all at the same time. Emily was disappointed in her. That very fact alone broke the last shred of hope Alison had in her. Her heart was shattered and she couldn't even think straight anymore.

The brunette's heart was shattered in hundreds of little pieces. She wanted more than anything to run back to Alison and hold her as tightly as she could, but she didn't have it in her. Making her way back home quickly and ignoring her parents as soon as she walked in, Emily ran to her room and shut the door; her back falling to it immediately after shutting it. The brunette buried her face in her arms, holding her knees closely to her chest, trying to soak up the moment, even though it just was too horrible to be true.

To Alison's worst surprise, her dad arrived home exactly at the moment she stood up to go inside. Kenneth took in Alison's tear stained face and the fact that Emily was nowhere in sight and pulled his daughter in to hug her tightly. "Alison? What's wrong? Where's Emily?" He asked in a concerned tone. Alison sniffled, her tears staining her dad's shirt as she mumbled out. "It's over dad. She hates me. I screwed up."  
>"Al...I'm sure we can call her over and resolves this. Emily loves you."<br>Alison finally pulled away and glared at Kenneth. She knew he was only trying to help but she couldn't tell him the real truth, not now. "No! Stop trying to help, dad! It's over and no one can fix anything! Just stop!" She yelled out and finally ran inside and up into her bedroom, locking her door behind her. She threw her phone down on the ground and then flopped onto her bed, burying her face in her pillow as she continued to sob so hard her body was beginning to shake.

Emily simply ignored her parents who were trying to get her out of her room and to speak to them. The brunette shut them out; not wanting to deal with the situation, nor have to explain why exactly she was back home when just a day before, Emily wanted nothing to do with them. She sat over her bed, not wanting to slide underneath the sheets just yet. It was still early, probably around 7 pm or so. Emily looked up at her ceiling, a pale face, her body trembling just a little bit. She couldn't believe she'd ended it with Alison. As the tears kept coming, Emily got too tired to fight them off; instead, she fell asleep, her phone beside her on vibrate.

Alison tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable but nothing felt right. Her body was shaking and she was shivering and hot all at once. She needed Emily. Everything felt so wrong without the brunette. "This is all your fault." She yelled as she looked down at her stomach. The blonde was acting kind of crazy but she couldn't help it. She needed to calm down but all that she could manage to do was keep crying. Alison started to hiccup as her sobbing grew louder. She was starting to get to the point of being unable to breath. The blonde hadn't ever cried like this before and she hated it.

To her own surprise, Emily slept peacefully throughout the night, though she knew when she'd wake up that reality would have to settle in once again. She was terrified of what the next following days and weeks were to bring to her, to them. She didn't want to have to officially break ties with Alison, but for now, it was for the best for both of them. After sleeping for a sound 14 hours, Emily opened her eyes and looked up at the bland white ceiling, blinking a few times. "Ali?" She turned around, only then remembering the previous night. "Oh.." She mumbled to herself, frowning, her lips trembling already.

Alison finally fell asleep due to over exhaustion from the crying and the headache brought on by it. She slept through the night, only because she'd used up all her energy crying and her body finally gave in to the sleep it had been fighting off. When she awoke in the morning, the reality set in again when she awoke alone instead of with Emily beside her. "I miss you already." She whispered out already almost in tears again, though she knew Emily wouldn't hear her.

Emily stood up, finally deciding to walk downstairs and face her parents. They looked at her, worried. "Look." Emily sat down beside her dad who had wrapped his arms around her; noticing that his daughter seemed to be stressed. "I gave her back the ring and I walked away, it's over." She huffed out, fighting the tears that came down her cheeks however. Emily's lips were trembling, both of her parents coming to hold her.

Kenneth walked into Alison's room after hearing her sobbing yet again. "Al...tell me what happened?" He spoke in a soothing tone as he rubbed Alison's back. "It's over, dad. She gave me the ring back." She held it out to show him that she was in fact telling the truth. A crease appeared between Kenneth's brows as he thought about what he could do or say. "Well I'm sure this is something you girls can fix. I'll be back in a moment Al, okay?" Alison simply nodded, unable to speak anymore. Kenneth left the room and dialed Emily's number, staying a distance away, knowing Alison would've protested.

After crying it out for a few minutes in her parents' arms, Emily felt a little better, though she still missed Alison's presence. She missed everything about her; her scent, her voice, her company, it wasn't fun to wake up and not have her by her side. Her heart was still pounding, she had a headache. As soon as she felt her phone vibrate, she excused herself for a moment, making her way outside. "H-Hello?" She answered the unknown number, to her surprise; it was Mr. DiLaurentis.

Kenneth was pleased to hear Emily's voice on the other end. He was worried she might not answer. "Emily? It's Kenneth. How are you doing?" He knew there was no reason to ask but he didn't know how to approach the subject. Kenneth didn't want to upset Emily before he even got the chance to find out what had happened. Alison remained in her room, however, completely unaware that Kenneth was speaking to Emily. The blonde was too busy mourning the loss of the brunette to pay attention to anything.

"Fine I suppose, I've had better days..." Emily desperately wanted to ask about Alison, but she knew that right now wasn't the right time to do so. She didn't want to cause herself some more heartache. "Is everything okay, Mr. DiLaurentis?" She finally opened the front door and stood on the porch; making her way to the little swing that was on the right side. She knew Kenneth was about to rant or speak about what had happened, and she didn't want to hear it, but out of respect, she stayed on the line.

Kenneth sighed deeply into the phone. He rubbed the back of his neck as he paced through the hall, though being careful not to speak when passing Alison's room. He could still hear the blonde's muffled sobbing, and his heart broke for his daughter. "I'm afraid not, Emily. You see Alison has been a wreck since you left last night. Whatever happened between you two is not my business but when my daughter is unable to stop crying, I'm forced to take matters into my own hands. Now you're young and I'm sure that you might have reacted rather rashly but I think it best you and Alison speak face to face and patch things up."

Emily couldn't help but laugh a little bit in the phone when Kenneth told her she was practically reacting the wrong way with the situation; she, however, meant no disrespect. The brunette thought long and hard before answering the blonde's dad, who was just being a caring soul, as usual. "I'm sorry, Mr. DiLaurentis, but I left because of something that had nothing to do with me, actually. I'm sure if Alison would for once tell you the truth that you'd understand this situation a little more. And I say this without disrespect, but she needs help, she really does. I don't think she can get herself out of this one without hurting herself. Have a nice day." Emily quickly hung up, sighing. She sat silently on the porch swing, not sure if she should cry or remain quiet.

Kenneth was in utter shock. He'd never heard Emily speak so boldly and uncaringly when it came to Alison. "I guess I was wrong. I thought that was true love I saw in your eyes, the same thing I saw in Alison's eyes when she told me that she thought of you as more than a friend. That's why I supported you two despite my thoughts on you two being too young to get married. But if you can so willingly walk away from my daughter when she's made a mistake, then maybe I'm wrong about you, Emily. But I know Al. She's far from perfect and she may hurt those around her with her mistakes. But when it comes to you, she has the best of intentions. Do you know that? She's never told me she loved anyone until you." Kenneth had never had much to say when it came to Alison's life decisions but he couldn't bare to see his daughter suffer like this. He knew the pain of losing the one you loved most. With that, he hung up, hoping just maybe he'd talked some sense into Emily.

Emily couldn't help but shake her head in disbelief. Had Mr. DiLaurentis told her that she was too harsh when it came to the situation with Alison? She just couldn't take it anymore. She'd had enough with Alison, or the DiLaurentis family for that thought. Alison wasn't the only one that was going through a heartbreak; she was technically the one that had betrayed Emily in the first place. She remembered that night clearly, when Paige tried to make a move on her, Emily rejected her, and when she saw Alison with hickies.. telling her that she hadn't used protection with Noel.. it made her sick to her stomach, even to this day.

Alison overheard the last part of Kenneth's conversation and burst through her door and into the hallway, angrily. "Dad! What were you thinking?! I told you it couldn't be fixed! This is my fault and you went and blamed Emily! What the hell?! Now she'll probably hate me even more!" The blonde shouted out, not even the tiniest bit grateful that her dad had stood up for her. She ran back into her room and locked her door, not giving Kenneth the chance to speak. Without thinking, she dialed Emily's number, knowing she'd get her voicemail but she left a message anyway. "Hey Kil...I mean Emily. I know you hate me and I don't blame you but I didn't tell my dad to call. I don't know what he was thinking and I'm sorry you were ambushed. And..." Her voice broke as the tears spilled out but she forced herself to finish the message. "I'm sorry for everything. I miss you and I still love you." She whispered into the phone through her tears and then hung up, already panicking about what would happen if or when Emily listened to her message.

As soon as Emily received Alison's phone call; her heart skipped a beat. She didn't dare answer, knowing that it would cause just that much more heartache than the two were actually going through. Once she heard the "beep" on her phone indicating that she had a voicemail, she listened to it, knowing that the tears would arrive upon her face moments later. And, of course, she was right; tears began to flow down her cheeks and over her chin. She still couldn't believe that Alison was pregnant, it wouldn't sink in yet. The brunette chucked her phone beside her, whispering to herself as she did so. "I-I love you too, Ali."

The blonde stared at the blank screen on her phone. She couldn't decide if she was more afraid that Emily hadn't replied or called or if she was more afraid that she would. The last thing Alison wanted was a phone call from Emily telling her she truly meant it was over and asking that Alison no longer speak to her. She couldn't even begin to imagine a life without being able to talk to Emily. Without thinking, the blonde went through her old texts with Emily and reread the countless conversations between them, fresh tears spilling out each time she found one of their more heartfelt texts.

Emily walked inside and confronted her parents once more. They truly did look concerned for the brunette; which also tore Emily's heart apart. "Emily, how about we go out for breakfast, just the three of us." Wayne, her father, offered. Of course, Emily accepted the offer; she didn't want to be left alone. The brunette nodded and placed her hair in a bun, deciding to try to enjoy the rest of the day with her parents. Even though she wasn't with Alison at this very moment, she missed her, she truly did. Even though she'd given her the ring back, it didn't mean she didn't love her anymore.

Alison finally stopped reading when she got to the last message. She looked at Emily's ring and played around with it, unable to really let it sink in that Emily would never marry her. She just couldn't believe it was over. When she heard a soft knock on the door, she set the ring down and looked up to see Kenneth enter her room. "Al? You haven't eaten anything. You skipped dinner too. Let me buy you breakfast? You'll feel better with some comfort food." Her dad offered, wanting to at least get Alison out the house for a while.

Emily had managed to put on some jeans and a comfortable tank top with normal running shoes. She had slid on the "Emily" bracelet that Alison had gotten them all a few years back out of routine; she'd always wear it before she went anywhere, really. The Fields family slid into the car and made their way to The Brew, with a new owner, it had been quite busy and had been known as the "It" place to go out for breakfast as a family, plus; their food was really good. Emily sat in the car silently until arriving, then followed her parents to get a table.

Alison finally agreed realizing she was actually pretty hungry. "The Brew?" Kenneth asked, knowing it was the only place the blonde liked to go for breakfast. Alison nodded and carefully stood up. She looked at herself in the mirror, unsurprised to see that she looked awful. She quickly washed her face and combed her hair, tying it in a braid. There was nothing she could do about her puffy, red eyes so she didn't bother to put on makeup or anything. Alison slipped on a pair of sweats she'd borrowed from Emily once and a comfortable tank top along with a pair of flip-flops. She walked alongside her dad who had waited for her in the hallway and together, they headed to car.

Emily sat comfortably in a booth beside her dad and her mother. As soon as the waitress brought them a menu, she looked it over for a minute and finally decided what she wanted. "I'll have two eggs over easy with some bacon and beans, please." She ordered politely, flashing a nice smile over at the new waitress. She then let her back relax over the back of the booth, breathing regularly, looking over at her parents from time to time, however; she really had nothing to say to them.

Alison closed her eyes as her dad drove the short distance to The Brew. She was still so weak and exhausted from the emotional roller coaster she'd gone through. When they finally arrived, she followed her dad inside and over to their table. She sat down and grabbed a menu, looking it over even though she already knew what she wanted. When the waitress finally arrived to get their drink orders, Alison interrupted. "We're ready to order actually." She smiled politely and let her dad order first. "I'll have blueberry pancakes and a side of bacon, please." Alison ordered and thanked the waitress after handing over her menu.

Emily made sure to turn off her phone when she was out with her parents; they especially hated when she texted in front of them, which was understandable. The brunette took a sip of her juice once it came to the table, gently setting it upon the placemat in front of her. She made small conversation with her parents, not really trying to explain why she'd ended things with Alison. She wasn't ready to speak about it, and thankfully her parents respected that. Even though Emily was still upset with them, she truly needed their support right now, and she knew they wouldn't walk away from her.

Alison sipped at her coffee and glanced around the place, finally taking notice of the brunette who always caught her eye. Emily. Just when the blonde was feeling up to eating her favorite breakfast, she lost all appetite, her stomach dropping. She wanted to get up and talk to the brunette but there was no way she could go over there. Pam and Wayne already hated her and probably wouldn't allow her anywhere near Emily now. "Dad...Em's here. I can't do this." Alison spoke loudly without meaning to, not realizing others could hear her.

Finally, the brunette had received her food. "Thank you." She whispered over at the waitress and picked up her fork. It wasn't long after before taking her first bite that she examined the room, of course; she quickly spotted Alison. The brunette sighed and closed her eyes, her parents beside her noticing that the blonde was there as well. "Well shit. I need air." Emily practically pushed her parents out of the way and made her way outside, breathing in deeply though she was sort of panicked. She really just needed this moment alone with her parents, and out of all people that she could see, why was it Alison?

Alison saw that Emily had stepped outside and took the opportunity to get some air as well. She knew that she was practically ambushing Emily, which wasn't fair at all. But she needed the brunette. She couldn't stay away and she certainly couldn't pretend she hadn't seen her. She slid out of her seat and ran outside before Emily could return back inside. She stood a small distance away and just looked at the brunette. "Hey..." She whispered, not knowing what else she could say.

"Ali..." Emily mumbled out, not sure if she should just walk away, start to cry, or turn around and fall right into the blonde's arms. Instead, she stood still. Her face was pale, her body turned numb quickly; she had no idea what she could do right now. She batted her eyelashes a few times and finally managed to turn around. She held back tears, her lips trembling, she really didn't want to see Alison right now, however; here they both were. It had not even been 24 hours since Emily gave Alison the ring back, and there it was, Alison kept hers on.

Alison played with the engagement ring on her finger. It wasn't that she really had any hope but simply that taking it off was too painful. She'd already had to watch Emily give hers back and that had broken her enough. The blonde walked over, closer to Emily. She desperately wanted to pull the brunette in for a hug but she knew that Emily would probably resist. "I..." Alison didn't know what she could say. She looked down, her eyes suddenly catching on to what was on Emily's wrist. She couldn't help herself as she gently reached out to cradle Emily's wrist in one hand, the other tracing over the bracelet. "You still wear it." She whispered softly.

"I do." Emily whispered out, not even daring to move from Alison's soft embrace; the hold that she had on her hand was something that had always given her goose bumps. The brunette gently pulled Alison in for a tight hug, holding her waist softly, whispering. "I miss you." Before pulling away. She then wiped a few tears from her eyes and walked back inside before she'd burst out into tears, she really wasn't ready for a confrontation with the blonde just yet, it had taken a lot out of her to simply hug her.

Alison was surprised by Emily's response. She was sure that the brunette would push her away but she hadn't. Maybe there was some hope left after all. "I'm glad you wear it." Alison finally replied as she dropped Emily's wrist back down. It was all too much, to be this close to the brunette and not really be with her anymore. She let Emily hug her and hugged back tightly, almost afraid to let go. "I miss you too." She whispered to Emily's back, the brunette already heading back inside. She took a few moments to herself to wipe away at her own tears before she rejoined her dad inside.

Emily sat down beside her parents once again. "We have to go." She mumbled out loudly, people around her hearing. She simply got up and then took her parents' keys, insisting that she drive. It wasn't the fact that she was utterly disappointed with Alison that had her bothered, it was that if she stayed near the blonde much more; she'd end up forgiving her or caving in to her excuses or such things, and she didn't want that. She wanted time to think, time to be alone, to be single and to simply breathe; even if deep down she'd probably end up forgiving her, she wasn't ready, not now.

Alison sat down in front of her dad once again, thankful that he knew not to ask questions. She overheard Emily forcing her parents to leave and sighed deeply. Both the blonde and Kenneth wore a similar frown until the waitress finally appeared with their food. "Thank you." Alison mumbled, though she'd lost her appetite. "Al..you have to eat. Starving yourself won't bring her back." Kenneth tried to reason with Alison, concerned with his daughter's well being. Finally Alison complied and picked up her fork, eating some of her pancakes and bacon.

As soon as the brunette stood up, she walked by the DiLaurentis table, almost giving them both the cold shoulder. Emily finally caved in and gave the keys to her dad, asking him to drive her home. Summer vacation was almost done, and it was going to be their final senior year at Rosewood High, she was excited. Once in the car and finally arriving home, Emily decided to put on her swimsuit and to go for a swim at the recreational center, hopefully to just calm down; even though all she could do was think about the blonde who clouded her thoughts most of the time.

The blonde and her dad both looked up to politely say bye to Emily as she passed but the brunette practically ignored them both. It finally set in for Kenneth that he had to stop pushing. This was obviously not an easy fix and he'd leave it to Alison. "I'm sorry if I made anything worse." He spoke quietly to his daughter. Alison shook her head and finally set her fork down to sip on her coffee instead. "It's not any better or worse. I don't know if it'll ever get better but I don't think it could get worse." She frowned and couldn't help but let a few tears slip out.

Emily headed over to the recreational center, paying for her entry. She went into the locker rooms and put her towel in the locker that was assigned to her. The pool wasn't very busy, which was a good thing. Emily simply headed out and then dipped her legs into the pool, finally diving in afterwards, she enjoyed her afternoon swimming, it would always calm her down when she was upset; and this time, it worked, not well, however, but it was better than nothing. The rest of her day went by smoothly, after swimming, she headed home, had dinner with her parents and went straight to bed.

Alison finally couldn't handle holding it all in out in public. "Let's go." She practically demanded. Kenneth however thankfully understood his daughter's feelings and stood up after paying. With one arm around Alison, he walked with her to the car. When they finally arrived home, Alison went straight up to her room wordlessly. The worst part for her was that she had no one else to talk to and practically no hobbies. Alison suddenly realized that without Emily she practically had no life. She suddenly felt quite pathetic and that made her feel even worse.

Time went by slowly for Emily. It had been days since she'd spoken to Alison. Things had still been so messy, she tried to avoid her phone at all costs, also tried to not walk by the DiLaurentis house when she'd go out for walks. Emily would try to avoid speaking to the other girls as well; she had isolated herself the best she could, though things still hurt. She wanted nothing more than to be there for Alison, in this very moment; though time was of the essence. She was young, she had fallen in love very young, she thought everything was perfect, but she'd moved too quickly. She missed waking up and falling asleep beside Alison, which caused a little bit of a sleep problem for the brunette.

The days dragged on for Alison. She pretty much only ever came out to eat because Kenneth would force her. She'd been starting to feel sick because of the pregnancy and for now, she'd convinced her dad it was just due to the depression. Kenneth had given in and left Alison alone for now. The blonde thought a lot about those positive tests. Maybe they were defective. If she went to her doctor, maybe she'd get to make all this disappear. She could only hope that she wasn't really pregnant. "Dad! I don't feel so good! I need to go to the doctor!" She shouted from the top of the stairs, knowing he'd allow her to drive there on her own.

Summer was quickly coming to an end. It had been just over a week that Emily had not spoken to Alison, and everyday was still pure torture. She would wake up in tears, still having trouble to fall asleep without someone to hold her at night as well. Early Monday morning, Emily got out of bed and got dressed, finally deciding to go out for a walk after a few days of staying inside the house. She put on sweat pants and a sweater vest, tied up her hair in a bun and plugged her earphones in her phone, deciding o go out for a jog.

Alison grabbed her keys and made her way to her car. She pulled out her dark wig, deciding that if she was to get an ultrasound, it would be Vivian's instead of hers. She drove quickly to the doctor's office and dug into her purse for her Vivian Darkbloom I.D. It was then that she realized she'd given it to CeCe to escape to Paris. "Fuck." Alison huffed out and pulled off the wig. She reluctantly made her way into the reception area and walked up to the receptionist. "I need an ultrasound. I think I might be pregnant." She whispered and then filled out all the forms and waited for her turn.

Emily jogged down the mostly empty streets of Rosewood. Deciding that she was finally ready to pass by the DiLaurentis house, she made the turn, spotting the ever so famous house that she'd spent so much time in. After seeing that Alison's car wasn't there, she felt relieved; knowing that if Alison had seen her run by, she'd run outside to chase her. Emily kept running, bumping into a frantic Spencer that had been school shopping. A smile formed over Emily's lips as she whispered to herself. "Typical Hastings.." She waved hello.

Once Alison's name was called, she stood up quickly to follow the nurse into the medical examiner's room. After the nurse took all her vitals, she was left alone to change into a hospital gown. The blonde anxiously waited for the doctor to come in. When she finally heard a knock, she mumbled out that it was okay for the doctor to come in. Her doctor greeted her and asked her the regular questions about how she was doing and then she set up the machine for Alison's ultrasound. Moments later, Alison's stomach dropped as she saw the developing baby on the screen. She was in fact pregnant. The doctor printed out her ultrasound for her and congratulated her but Alison was too devastated to respond. This couldn't be real. "Your bill will be mailed. You're free to go, Miss DiLaurentis." The doctor said, leaving the room and closing the door behind her to give Alison privacy to change.


	2. Chapter 2

Emily had been invited out for lunch with Spencer, and she'd happily accepted. The brunette made her way inside the Hastings home, spending some time with Spencer; it had been a while since they'd seen each other.  
>"So, school shopping I see?" Emily couldn't help but chuckle as soon as she saw all the binders and new bags that the brunette had bought, of course, Spencer nodded and confirmed Emily's remark.<br>"Everything is on sale, plus, I'm actually excited to go back to school. I really must be crazy." Spencer laughed, a small chuckle escaping her lips.

Alison felt so alone. The girls had pretty much shut her out following suit with Emily. But could she blame them? She was the lying, manipulative queen bee and Emily was the sweet, lovable, innocent one. The blonde stared at the ultrasound for a long while before she finally changed and headed back out to her car. "The bill is going to mailed..." She suddenly thought. "Shit." She mumbled, realizing her dad was going receive her medical bill and be furious with her.

Emily finally went out for dinner with the Hastings family, it felt as though she was finally able to smile without having to fake it. After eating and coming back from one of the fanciest restaurants in Philadelphia, the two girls found themselves sitting in the backseat, silent, until Spencer decided to ask.  
>"Em, how are you and Alison? You haven't talked about it, and I don't see you two together anymore..." She whispered to her quietly, not wanting to startle Emily who clearly didn't want to talk about it yet.<br>"It's complicated, Spence. I guess it just, well..." Tears were forming over Emily's eyes, Spencer hugging her to comfort her. The hug felt nice, it was very well a much needed one at that.  
>"Dad, drop us off at Alison's, please." Spencer asked, wanting to speak to Alison to know exactly what was going on. Of course, Peter; her father, agreed, and once arriving at Rosewood, dropped the girls off there.<p>

Alison finally arrived home and slammed the door angrily behind her. Kenneth heard Alison return and walked over to greet her. "Al? What happened? Are you feeling better?" He asked, truly concerned. "I'm fine, dad. They didn't find anything wrong." She lied like the doctor visit had been no big deal. But the ultrasound in her purse was a like a heavy weight on her shoulders. Now there was no escaping the truth and soon her dad would know. "I'm not hungry for dinner." She quickly added, heading upstairs and locking her door once more. She pulled out her phone and checked it. Of course, no new messages. She was completely and utterly alone and it was killing her. The blonde had never felt so vulnerable in all her life and this time it was her own undoing; she couldn't even blame -A.

As soon as Peter dropped the girls off at the DiLaurentis house, he kept driving and parked in the Hastings parking lot. Spencer turned to Emily, nodding; finally knocking on the door as Mr. DiLaurentis answered, Spencer spoke enthusiastically. "Hi, Mr. DiLaurentis, how are you?" Spencer was quite the social butterfly, which was odd on her part. Kenneth welcomed them both inside to sit in the dining room, striking up a gentle conversation; though he kept eyeing Emily from time to time, she knew that he had so much to ask, she felt uneasy, just wanting to leave. "Oh, could I see Alison, please?" Spencer asked politely, Mr. DiLaurentis agreeing, walking to the bottom of the stairs and calling out his daughter's name.

Alison groaned and finally opened her door to drag herself downstairs. "What could it possibly be now." She thought, annoyed that she couldn't just be left alone in her misery. Her eyes were stained red from the tears she'd been crying and she looked like she hadn't slept in days. The blonde felt weak and she was shivering a bit too, probably a sign of making herself sick by not eating or sleeping much. She wrapped a blanket around her body and made her way downstairs, only to be greeted by both Spencer and Emily. Instantly she felt a mixture of feelings, a bit of happiness upon seeing Emily, but utter misery knowing this wasn't going to be good, and surprise that it was Spencer, the one who disliked her most amongst the girls, that came to see her. "Spencer. What are you doing here?" Alison spoke barely above a whisper, too weak to even bother hiding how vulnerable she felt.

Emily silently stood between Mr. DiLaurentis and Spencer. Upon seeing Alison; her heart began to race, almost like it was going to jump out of her chest. "Damn." The brunette thought to herself, Alison really looked miserable.. and exhausted. Emily took a deep breath, a mixture of emotions beginning to fill up her body, she had no idea how this would turn out to be, and it scared her.  
>"Your room, Ali?" Spencer hinted out, not speaking loudly. After seeing Alison agree, Spencer followed her up, however; Emily stayed back.<br>"Em, come." Spencer insisted, grabbing the brunette's arm, they all walked upstairs and made their way to Alison's room, closing the door afterwards. Spencer did seem concerned about the two girls, however she knew how dramatic Alison could be, therefore she kept her walls up.  
>"I can't do this. I can't be here." Emily spoke loud enough for both of the girls to hear her.<p>

Alison didn't want to deal with whatever Spencer had to say. All she wanted was a chance to make things better with Emily. She knew she couldn't fix anything but surely they could somehow get better. Alison could tell that Emily too hadn't been sleeping well, though she didn't look as miserable as Alison did. "Yeah. Okay." The blonde reluctantly agreed. She was disappointed to see that Emily wasn't going to come up but she couldn't help but like Spencer just a tiny bit in that moment for making the brunette come along. Alison slammed her door shut and sat down on her bed, looking at both the girls. "Let her go, Spencer. Emily hates me and I don't want to hurt her anymore than I have." Alison whispered in a completely defeated tone. She couldn't bare to see Emily so miserable and she knew no good would come from forcing her into anything she wasn't ready for.

"I don't hate you. I'm just disappointed in you, Alison." Emily finally spoke to the blonde who sat on her bed in front of her. She ran a hand through her hair and then turned to Spencer, who seemed to be utterly confused about the whole situation. "It's complicated, Spence." Emily admitted, sighing and turning around, her back to the two girls who were in the room with her. She had no idea if she had enough courage to completely explain the situation to Spencer, but she knew that the Hastings girl knew more than she led on.  
>"No, I get it. When it has to do with Alison, it's always complicated." Spencer spoke, not wanting to be rude. "You're both messes, you both haven't slept in days, I know something happened between the two of you; it's always been obvious that something has, but not something this big.." Spencer's words fit the situation properly, speaking from what she saw.<p>

"That's almost worse. At least if you hated me, I'd let you go even though it would break my heart. Disappointing you means, I'll have to see that in your eyes and hate myself for the rest of my life." Alison replied, her voice still very weak and quiet. She buried her face in her pillow and only looked up to give Emily a look not to tell Spencer about her pregnancy. The blonde wasn't ready for anyone but Emily to know right now. She wasn't even sure whether she wanted to keep the baby yet. Alison finally sat up again and took a deep breath. "You're right, Spencer. I'm a mess without Emily." She finally admitted, though she had no idea what else she could say. She knew she'd screwed up big time but she couldn't give up on Emily, not until the brunette told her she'd given up on her for good.

"It looks like my work is done here. I'll let you both talk. Emily, text me later if you want to come by and watch a movie, my parents keep asking about why you don't come over as often anymore." Spencer turned around, hugging the brunette who once again had tears in her eyes; she then walked out of the blonde's bedroom and headed home. Emily and Alison were now alone in the same room after a week of not talking. Alison would probably be around 6-7 weeks pregnant. It was all the brunette could think about. She still had her back turned to Alison, knowing that the waterworks would begin to flow once they both made eye contact again.

"Yeah. Thanks Spence." Alison politely thanked Spencer for bringing Emily over and awkwardly hugged her before showing her out. She turned her attention back to the brunette who looked ready to burst into tears. "Em..." Alison sighed deeply and dug into her bag for the ultrasound. "I know you probably don't want to see but I went to the doctor today. I got this." She handed over the ultrasound and waited, giving Emily the time to process and respond. Alison couldn't help but feel anxious, afraid that showing Emily that there was no doubt that she was pregnant might make things so much worse. But at the same time, if she was to keep the child, she wanted to share every moment of the baby's life with Emily.

Emily really had no idea of how to react with Alison in the very moment that was going on. "So you really are..." Emily whispered to Alison, sighing once she took hold of the ultrasound and looked at it for a short moment. It was true, she was just over 7 weeks pregnant, and it hadn't even sunk into the brunette's mind yet. She didn't have any words to say, she kept her eyes on the little fetus, which was developing inside of Alison's stomach. Still wishing this wasn't true, Emily gently placed the photo over the edge of Alison's bed, finally turning around to look at her. "I-.. I don't know what to say about this, or what to say to you." Her tone of voice was hurt, disappointment in her eyes.

"I don't know what I can say either, Emily. I messed up and all I can say is that I'm sorry I ruined us. I'm so sorry that I acted upon my drunken state of stupidity." Alison knew that an apology was only a small start. The blonde was well aware that Emily wasn't just going to forgive her overnight if she ever did forgive her. Alison took the photo and shoved it back into her bag. She didn't want to look at it anymore. It only made her remember that the developing life inside her had ruined her own life already. "No one even knows yet. I don't know how I'm going to tell dad. Emily, I don't even know if I want to keep it." Alison couldn't even think of calling the fetus anything but "it." She knew if the baby was to be born, she'd love her child like any good mother but at that moment, she simply hated the unborn child. She just wanted to erase the pregnancy all together.

"Stop, please, just.. stop, don't say anything else." Tears finally began to roll down Emily's cheeks and onto her chin, some of them hitting her shirt. She couldn't bare to listen to Alison speaking; especially about her pregnancy and such. It still killed Emily inside that she'd rejected Paige that night while the blonde was getting it on with Noel; it made her feel sick to her stomach. She knew that Alison had acted stupid in her drunken state; and Alison knew that too, but it still killed her inside, more than it should. Emily really was in love with this girl, and it took every ounce of energy to tell her what she said next. "Maybe.. uhm. Just take care of yourself, Ali." Emily finally turned around and placed her hand over the doorknob, a tap on the shoulder stopping her from leaving, however.

Alison stopped speaking when she saw that her words were only breaking Emily even more than she already had. The blonde wanted to reach out and wipe away all of Emily's tears but she just couldn't when she knew she was the cause of them. She could tell that the brunette just wanted to leave. It was hard on the both of them but what Alison hated most was that Emily couldn't even bare to be around her anymore. "Emily..." Alison whispered but she had nothing to say that could change how the brunette felt. When Emily decided to finally leave, Alison stood up. She had to stop her somehow. The blonde gently tapped on Emily's shoulder and weakly, practically begged. "Please don't leave."

"Why. Why would I stay?" Emily mumbled out. She was really upset that Spencer had dragged her over there, especially that she'd left and let the two girls to talk when Emily clearly didn't want to be there. The brunette moved her shoulder to the side and sighed, avoiding contact with the blonde at all costs. "I look at you, Alison, and I only picture you and Noel, and this.. and this baby that I have nothing to do with it, with this.. why would I stay around and live with this when I can just go on and try to not think about it.. even if it kills me to the fact that it hurts to think about you..." Emily felt tears fall over her eyes once more. She turned around, the pain in her eyes visible.

"Because I love you. That's why. Do you think I want to have a child, much less /his/ child? This is killing me too, Em. But what's the most awful part is losing you. I mean I don't even want to keep it. I don't want to be a mom right now. My dad is going to kill me when he finds out. You can walk away and have your parents love you and support you. But I have nothing left. I'll have nowhere to go and do you know that none of that matters to me? I just don't want to lose you." Alison let her emotions out for once. She hated to express any type of emotional sentiment but she was losing the brunette. The blonde just had to do something. She slowly sat down on her bed and let the silent tears that had formed roll down her cheeks, not even noticing them anymore, as crying had become such a regular thing for her lately.

"Killing your own unborn child because of a mistake YOU made really does sound like the typical you." Emily sighed, wiping her own tears from her eyes. She tied up her hair in a messy bun and let herself for once this week; feel bad for Alison. "Your dad would never EVER kick you out, Alison. He'd be upset, and he might not talk to you for a bit, but he'd help you. There are so many support groups and other people from your family that would help you too, I know it." Emily tried to be as optimistic as she could, even though she knew deep down that what she was saying was not going to get through to Alison. All she could do was try to regain her composure; hoping for the best.

"My parents wanted to send Jason away for his drinking problems. Do you really think my dad would keep around his pregnant daughter? My family is one to send their problems away so they won't have to deal with them. Dad is going to find out when the medical bill comes anyway and what about this town? How am I going to face everyone who already wants to take me down with a child on the way? I already failed to protect you. How will I protect a child when someone wants my life?" Alison let herself fall apart and voice all the thoughts that had kept her awake lately. She let the tears stream down her face as she hugged a pillow to her chest. "Don't you think if I had some choice, I'd make it. But you got to leave, Em. You're the one with a bright future. You'll go to Stanford and you'll find happiness. I won't let my mistakes ruin your life too." Alison knew in that moment that she loved Emily enough to give her whatever she wanted, even if that was for her to let go.

Emily really couldn't believe what she was hearing. Alison was telling her to just go to Stanford and to forget about practically having a future with her. She shook her head in disbelief, starting with one thing. "Whatever your bill is, I'll go to the office and pay for it, at least let me do that. I don't care how much it costs. At least you wont have to worry about that, okay?" Emily tried to at least comfort her with one thing; even though she knew that Alison was so stubborn and wouldn't let her pay. The brunette, however; would make her way to the doctor'' office to pay anyways. She finally walked right in front of Alison, trying to speak words of wisdom. "It'll be alright, okay? No matter what. You're a fun person, you're smart, and you're gorgeous; you'll get around somehow, I just know it."

"You're always so positive, Em. I wish I saw the good in even the darker situations like you do." Alison sat up, shocked by what Emily had said. "Emily...I can't let you give all your hard earned money for my mistakes. That's not fair of me. I'm bringing you down just like Spencer told you I would. You stood up for me against everyone and all I've done is prove them all right. If I could make it up to you somehow, I would. I wanted a family with you. I still do but I didn't want a baby this soon. You shouldn't have to be a mother and end up losing the opportunity you have at Stanford. I love you. I want you to get all that you deserve." The blonde's voice had regained a tiny bit of strength as she spoke. Emily had been kind to her and stayed to talk; that gave her that little bit of hope she desperately needed.

"I'm not saying I'm giving up on my dreams, I'm going to Stanford next summer, and I'm proud of myself. But you need help and I'm offering to pay for you whether you like it or not. This isn't the time to be stubborn, okay? So just stop it." Emily spoke firmly and boldly, narrowing her eyebrows as she regained her composure quickly. "You made a mistake, you'll pay for it the rest of your life, but you need to accept it and learn to live with it. Now I can't make you keep this baby or get rid of it, but make the choice that you won't regret or it'll eat you up inside for years.. just like when you left, I had never had the chance to tell you that I loved you, in the right way. And it killed me for three years." Emily began to rant, finally deciding to stop speaking. She turned around and took some distance from Alison, knowing that if she'd stayed too close, she'd want to comfort her, and the brunette wasn't sure if she was ready for that or not.

"I know that. But if you ended up being there for me, I wouldn't want you choosing between your future at Stanford and one with me, with a child you never wanted. I don't want to be the reason you have any regrets. But thank you. For everything. I know I don't deserve any of it." Alison decided that the only way she was ever going to earn Emily's forgiveness was to finally take action for the biggest mistake of her life. She couldn't keep playing victim anymore. The blonde knew that by doing so, it forced Emily to be sympathetic and that it wasn't fair to use that to her advantage. "I don't know what the right decision is but I'm scared, Em. I'm not ready to be a mother but even if I was, what if I'm a terrible one? I just...well I'm afraid for this child to have me for a mother when I'm dangerous to everyone I love. But more importantly, I don't want to lose you. I want you in my life even if you decide that you can't ever be with me again." The blonde admitted, knowing that she'd rather have Emily in her life in some way than not at all. "I really miss you. But you're right. I have to figure out what to do with my life despite how badly it's turned out right now."

"God, Ali. Come here." Emily finally sunk in. She opened her arms widely to the blonde, holding her carefully, her arms wrapped around Alison's body gently and protectively. Emily had never held the blonde like this, this close, this long, this... good. It felt too good to be true, and she didn't want the hug to end, though she knew it had to. "I'm here for you. And, I love you. Always have, always will, Ali. Nothing is going to change that, I promise you." Emily blurted out carefully, rubbing the lower part of her back. She whispered the words against Alison's earlobe and didn't dare pull back until the blonde decided to do so herself.

Alison made her way into Emily's arms with no objections. She felt so comforted by the brunette's embrace. It was like all her problems dissipated whenever Emily was around. The brunette truly was Alison's savior. She leaned her head back against Emily's shoulder and closed her eyes, allowing her mental wounds to heal with the pure love she felt being this close to Emily. "And I love you, Emily. I don't think I could ever stop." The blonde whispered back. She finally opened her eyes and lifted her head to look up at Emily. "Don't let me go."

She felt her heart begin to race, nothing else in this moment mattered more than Alison and her well being. The brunette truly felt somewhat responsible for the fact that Alison hadn't slept in a few days, she really did look horrible, and her body felt weak, judging on the hug that they'd just shared. Emily couldn't help but cave in, she wasn't able to stay disappointed at Alison for too long. She turned her head to the side and planted a soft kiss over Alison's pale cheek, whispering in return. "I won't, not this time. You've got me, and I've got you, and your unborn child. No matter what." Emily spoke truthfully, even though it wasn't her child in retrospect, she loved Alison and she'd love the child as her own.

"You really mean that? You and I can really still have a future together?" Alison asked in disbelief, almost afraid that this was all a dream. She couldn't believe how lucky she was to be loved so much that even her worst mistake could be forgiven. "If I have this baby, Emily, I want you to be as much the child's mother as I am. I mean if you'd want that. I know it's not going to be easy and you don't deserve that burden but I do want a family with you. And I don't want him anywhere near this baby." She added, making sure Emily was well aware that it was only her in the picture and that she would never contact Noel again and hadn't since her drunken night. That night when the blonde had come to her senses, she'd vowed to stay loyal to Emily and she had. Alison truly loved Emily and she wouldn't let anything stand in the way of their future together if Emily was willing to give her a second chance.

Emily finally decided to do something that would convince Alison that she was saying what she meant. She had over a week alone of not being near Alison, and even though it did her some good, it made her notice just how much she missed her and how much she appreciated her company. Even though the brunette would always be disappointed in the choices that Alison had made that night, she couldn't hold her accountable for it when it was Noel who was there with her, and practically took advantage of her while she was drunk. Emily looked down at Alison with the most loving eyes, looking into Alison's icy blue eyes, she closed her own and let her lips graze over Alison's, finally kissing her like there was no tomorrow, slowly, and then all at once.

Alison stayed still in Emily's arms. She was both mentally and physically weak and the pregnancy was probably partly to blame for her horrid physical state. Every time she thought of food, missing Emily made her lose her appetite, or she felt sick and couldn't even bother to eat. The blonde knew that her one night of recklessness had cost her a lot but it was still Noel she held accountable. He'd known how she felt about Emily and still let things go too far. While Alison accepted the blame on her part, she'd never forgive him or help him with his own secrets ever again. Alison looked into Emily's warm brown eyes and blinked, the pure love in them overwhelming her in a good way. She kissed Emily back putting all the love she had for her into it, as she let her own eyes shut.

Even if the two still had so much to work on, Emily couldn't have been happier to share such a loving kiss with the blonde. After gently pulling away, a small smile over her face, she opened her eyes, locking them once again with Alison's. She couldn't believe it. After one week of being apart from the blonde, it all felt so good and overwhelming to say the least. She just couldn't help but slide her hand up to Alison's cheek after they'd shared the kiss, not daring to say one word for another minute or so. "I missed you much.." She admitted once again, licking over her lips; able to taste Alison's cherry chapstick.

The blonde had never felt so alive. It was like Emily had awoken her from her depression and brought her back to reality. She felt like her heart could beat freely again as its pace quickened with every gently gesture of the brunette. The blonde slowly opened her eyes and locked them onto Emily's. She allowed to see into them, to see that she too had the same look of pure love for her in them. "I missed you too. Very much." Alison told her, not daring to move an inch. She didn't want to be anywhere else but near Emily.

"Crap..." Emily spoke out loud, frowning and taking in a deep breath. She pulled away gently, her hand softly taking Alison's arm, sighing. "Our parents think we're done... how are we going to explain that we just practically kissed and made up?" Emily asked the blonde, not wanting to cause unwanted drama on both sides of their families. The brunette walked over to Alison's bed, sitting down and began to think. "I'm just going to keep my mouth shut. I've lied about so many things to my parents for so many years, I bet they wouldn't notice anyways.. a-and.." Emily began to rant, not really being able to stop herself, she let her back fall over the blankets on Alison's bed, taking deep breaths.

Alison came over and sat beside Emily. She placed her finger over the brunette's lips, stopping her from continuing to rant. "Sshh. Calm down, Emmy. My dad truly believed that we could fix things if we just talked. Since you convinced me to let you take care of my medical bill, with him it'll be easy, at least until I start to show...as for your parents...they hate me as it is, but I suppose you could just tell them I screwed up in a big way and out of anger you asked for a break. Tell them that out of my own stupid pride, I told you that a break practically meant it was over and that you only forgave me because I made it up to you and proved my love for you. It's at least sort of the truth and they believe the worst of me so they'll buy it." Alison was good at thinking up stories on her feet that stayed general but told just enough detail for people not to ask questions. She then pulled the brunette into her arms and held her tightly. It was her turn to comfort Emily. "Relax, Killer. We'll figure everything out together."

"Does that mean that you're going to keep him.. her.. it?" Emily whispered to Alison, allowing her hand to gently trail over Alison's stomach; keeping it unmoving once it reached the top of her bellybutton. Alison wasn't showing yet, but it was only a matter of weeks before she did, and she really wanted to make sure that the blonde was at least somewhat ready. "God, it's like you planned this out for years and it only took you two minutes. You're smart.. and honestly it scared me sometimes." She admitted, laughing nervously; however right when Alison's arms draped over Emily's body, she began to relax just that little bit.


	3. Chapter 3

"I don't know, Em. Do you want that? I mean this isn't just my decision anymore. I want to include you on this." Alison whispered back, refusing to make any decisions without knowing what Emily wanted. If this baby was to come into the world, the blonde wanted to be sure that Emily wanted him or her as well. She wouldn't put the burden of motherhood on the brunette for her own selfishness. Besides, Alison was still confused and frightened. "I had to think quickly to survive, Emmy. I guess it's just sort of in my instinct but I promise, you'll be included in any future plans I have. Speaking of the future...will you do me the honor of spending now and the rest my life with me?" She asked sweetly, taking Emily's ring and holding it up to her, wanting to place it back in its rightful place. She knew she was moving fast but it felt right to make everything official once again.

Emily's heart began to race, she felt happy yet somewhat uncomfortable over the fact that Alison had re-proposed that quickly. Emily gently shook her head and pulled away from Alison by just a little bit. "No.." She whispered, knowing it would kill Alison to hear that simple word after the little talk they were having. "I won't marry you, not for a bit. I'm sorry." She frowned, placing the ring back in the palm of Alison's hand. Feeling her lips trembling once more, Emily quickly stood up, her back to Alison, a few tears finally deciding to slide down her cheeks. "I think you should make your own choice. You're the one who's going to carry the baby and give birth..." She spoke quietly, her back still to Alison as she tried to regain her composure.

Alison stood up and sighed deeply. She ran her hand through her hair and held Emily's ring tightly in her hand as the tears formed in her eyes. "Emily..." Alison whispered, her voice breaking as she let herself burst into tears, despite hating to look so vulnerable in front of the brunette. She finally walked over and placed the ring in Emily's palm. "Keep it. Whether you ever marry me or not, I don't want to keep looking at this. It's yours and having it here to wake up to every morning is just too painful." Alison admitted to her pain and looked down at her feet. "I...I don't want you to leave. I hate waking up alone." She blurted out even though she knew she sounded kind of ridiculous.

"I will, some day. Just not now. Keep it, to remind you to never give up.. because when the right day will come, Ali.. I'll say yes, and you'll need it to be able to slide it down my finger." Emily spoke in a soft voice, finally turning around to find the blonde bursting in tears. "Hey, don't cry.. it's okay.." Emily tried to comfort her, however it was almost impossible to comfort the blonde when she was as frantic as this. "Shh, it's okay." Emily could obviously tell that Alison's hormones were playing tricks on her, the blonde simply needed to sleep and grab some decent food. "Do you, uhm. Want to go out for food? I could tell my mom I'm spending the night with Spencer, I'm sure Spence would vouch for me."

"You'll say yes? Are you sure about that?" Alison couldn't help but ask through her sobbing. She'd never been so afraid of anything in her life. But for Emily to walk away or worse say she loved her but never be with her, it would kill her. Alison couldn't stop crying even though her mind was telling her to. "What's wrong with me?" She mumbled, hating how little control she had over her emotions at the moment. "You'd lie again for me? Em...don't get into more trouble, please..." Alison whispered, her tears still streaming down her face. "But yeah, let's go out. I don't want to stay here, around my dad right now."

"Whether you believe it or not, I'd always lie for you Alison, no matter what the situation." Emily admitted. "Just please.. stop crying. It'll be okay, it'll all add up in the end, okay? I promise you that." The fact that the blonde was crying so much killed Emily inside, she wanted to be able to take all of her pain away, to just see a small smile over the blonde's lips. "We just have a lot of things to work out Alison, a lot of things. And I'm pretty sure right now that your main concern should be how you're going to explain a growing stomach.." Emily added. She didn't want to startle the blonde, however; she wanted to help her get somewhat ready.

"You care so much, Emily. I don't know what I did to deserve you." Alison replied, taking deep breaths to stop herself from crying again. She wiped away her own tears and finally managed to somewhat regain her composure. "I know. But can we figure that out when I'm not going insane?" Alison laughed a bit, trying to lighten the mood just a little. "I feel so out of control." She admitted as she made her way over to her full-length mirror. "Yuck. I look like a zombie or something." She ran her hands through her hair and then turned to Emily. "So where did you want to go eat? It's my treat and please don't argue just this once, okay? You've already done more than I deserve."

"I was thinking of pizza and fries.. there's a good place near Ravenswood, if you don't mind the short drive..?" Emily asked silently, not wanting to go too far in case Alison was too tired or something, she really didn't want to make the blonde uncomfortable or anything like that. The brunette stood behind Alison who made herself comfortable in front of a mirror; her hair gently gliding in her golden blonde locks. "You're fine.." She mumbled, gently brushing her hair. After, she placed a hand on her shoulder, then lowered her body; placing her free hand over Alison's stomach. "We'll be fine."

"Mmm pizza. I just hope I'll be able to eat it." Alison's eyes lit up at the word 'Pizza,' as it was her favorite food after all. "I don't mind at all. In fact leaving Rosewood for a while sounds really good right now." The blonde definitely felt like she could use a getaway even if it was only to get dinner with Emily. She placed her hand over the brunette's on her stomach. "Would you still stick by me if I keep it?" She whispered softly, wanting to be sure that Emily would stay no matter what decision she made. She felt weird to be so insecure but she figured it was probably just her hormones making her emotional.

"I've always stuck by you, what would make me change my mind now?" Emily answered in a quiet and relaxed tone of voice, meaning every word she was saying. She knew that she would stick by Alison no matter what the situation, no matter how hard things got. She kept her hand unmoving over Alison's stomach, knowing she couldn't feel anything just yet, however it intrigued her. She turned to face Alison, her eyes glowing. As odd as everything sounded, this very situation/moment felt right.. it felt like something from a fairytale. "I just want you to be comfortable with whichever decision you choose, and I will stand by you 100%. Sure, it'll take time to sink in, but with time comes growth, and with growth comes knowledge, and it's then you learn about yourself and you learn about the one you're with." Emily planted a soft kiss over Alison's cheek, then lowered her lips to kiss gently over Alison's stomach. She finally got up, feeling her stomach make odd noises. "Now that you mention it, I'm starving too."

"When did you get so smart about life experiences, Emmy?" She asked in teasing voice, rather impressed by the brunette's wisdom. "I guess I'm just so scared to lose you. You're beautiful and amazing and it's so easy for anyone to love you. I never let anyone love me and you still did. I guess I'm just afraid that if you choose to leave I'll truly be alone." Alison opened up, finally admitting to her fears. She knew that Emily could walk away from this, that someone would easily fall for her. But for her, Emily was it. She'd never be able to let anyone else in like she had with the brunette. Alison gave herself one last look in the mirror and shrugged, deciding she wasn't going to look any better at this point. "Well let's go then. I haven't managed to eat much in days and that can't be good for me. You drive?" Alison asked, placing the keys in Emily's palm.

"It's not good for either of you, Ali." Emily whispered quietly, offering her hand for Alison to take. "Sure, I don't mind driving." She handed her a small smile, squeezing the blonde's hand as soon as she took it. "You'll be fine, and I'll make sure to keep reminding you, okay?" Emily faced Alison, placing a hand over her cheek to caress her, wanting her to know that she in fact wasn't alone in this. Sure, the blonde had made mistakes, but so had Emily; and some mistakes are just more... horrible than others, but you live and learn, and they both had to move on, together. After heading downstairs, Emily noticed a note on the table from Mr. DiLaurentis. "Ali?" She narrowed her eyebrows. "Your dad had an emergency at work, said he'd be later." Emily spoke to Alison, making sure she at least knew her dad was gone before the two left as well.

The blonde took Emily's hand and squeezed it tightly. "I'm just so glad you were willing to forgive me. I...thank you for everything." Alison whispered, stopping herself from going into another emotional rant.  
>Alison shrugged and rolled her eyes. "He's always busy with work. Even when my mom was around, he never had time for us." She sighed softly, letting herself think of her mom for a moment. "I miss her, Em. It's times like this, I need her so much." Alison admitted, realizing that this pregnancy would be slightly easier if her mom was here to help her through it. The blonde grabbed her jacket off the kitchen table chair and slipped it on. She made her way to her car, waiting for Emily to unlock it.<p>

Emily sighed and walked over to Alison's car, her keys against the palm of her hands, she unlocked the doors and sat down in the drivers seat, buckling her seatbelt; then she turned to Alison. "Ali.. I haven't forgiven you yet, but I am giving you another chance, forgiveness comes in time, okay? But I am willing to spend as much time with you as possible until the forgiveness comes.. I care for you, and I love you." Emily placed her hand over Alison's knee, knowing her hormones were driving her crazy, she at least wanted to give her that little bit of human attention and affection that she probably craved so much right now.

Alison shrugged slightly and put her seatbelt on. She didn't really know how to react anymore. Either she had no emotions or too many lately and it was driving her crazy. "I love you too." The blonde wanted to say more but she was too afraid. Everything she said turned into some emotional speech or something lately and she hated it. She was sick of crying, sick of feeling and so she remained quite. "Let's just get dinner. I'm starving and this baby is making me feel really weird." Alison replied before closing her eyes and leaning back against the passenger seat. "Oh and spending time with me? How are your parents going to feel since you're back home now?" Alison directed the attention to Emily's issue, tired of the attention being on her mistake.

"It's okay to cry it out.." Emily whispered to the blonde who sat beside her. She noticed how much Alison's lips were trembling, and she simply wanted to help her get it out. "Let me deal with my parents.." She spoke calmly, then added. "Plus, since my school is paid for next year, I can maybe find myself a loft around Rosewood, I have enough money to pay rent alone for a year..." The brunette placed a hand over Alison's cheek, caressing it gently and trying to comfort her the best she could. "You're not alone, I promise. You see me, sitting right beside you right now? If you want me there when the baby is due, I'll be right beside you." And Emily meant every word that she said. She then started the car and headed out of the driveway. "Oh, can I take you somewhere after we eat?" She asked calmly.

Alison shook her head. "I know but I'm so sick of crying. It's all I've been doing for a whole week, Em. My dad almost tried to convince me to go to therapy or worse, a clinic. I know it's not your fault so don't feel guilty. It's just, I've been such a wreck lately and it's bad for the baby but this baby is making me so crazy." The blonde sighed and shook her head yet again. "I love you and I love that you would go to the ends of the earth for me but you can't just live on your own and spend all your money. That's too much. I saw the look on your face when you thought you'd have to cut your parents off for good. I'm not letting you do that. You love them and they love you." Alison firmly stated. She wouldn't allow Emily to lose her family no matter how much harder it made things for her. "And I would really like it if you were the one holding my hand in the delivery room. I can't think of anyone else I'd want beside me." She smiled softly, her first smile in a week. "Yeah, I'll go anywhere with you, Em."

Emily smiled as soon as she heard the blonde speak. Her heart began to beat just that little bit faster when she heard Alison speak; butterflies flowed throughout her gut and adrenaline began to race through her entire body. "I'll do what I want to make myself, to make you, and to make my parents happy. I'll still love them just as much as if I lived with them, and then again, I could probably get used to living alone since that's what I'll be doing when I go to Stanford." Emily sighed. She wanted nothing more than to bring Alison and the child with her, though she knew it would make it harder on her studies; it was something she'd have to discuss with the blonde when the time was right. All that Emily did was drive to the Pizza Parlor, one of the best around. As soon as she exited Rosewood, she slid her window open, squeezing Alison's knee with her free hand.

Alison felt just a tiny bit better when she saw that her words had brought a smile to Emily's face. She listened to all the brunette had to say and nodded. "As long as you're happy. That's all that matters." The blonde truly had lost focus on her own happiness, all her attention on how to make Emily happy. Besides if the brunette got all she wanted and deserved, then Alison was happy too. She smiled a bit brighter and turned her head to look directly at Emily. "You're going to be amazing at Stanford. I can't wait to be in that audience cheering for you at your swim meets." Alison could practically picture the brunette swimming at Stanford and taking home the gold medal.

"Yeah, you think I'll get out of the pool and every time I'll have a gold medal around my neck? I hope you're right Ali." Emily couldn't help but chuckle a little bit, a bright smile on her face. Upon arriving at the Pizza Parlor, she took the keys from the ignition and placed a hand over the blonde's shoulder. "Hungry?" She added, unlocking the doors so the girls could get out. Emily walked over to Alison's door and opened it for her, closing it afterwards and locking the car. She made her way to the front entrance and then found a booth for the two of them, sitting in front of Alison once she sat down. "Do you wanna share one or do you want your own?" She asked politely, knowing the two always had different pizza preferences.

"You're the best in Rosewood, Em. Who's to say you won't be the best at Stanford too. Besides, aren't I always right, Em?" Alison winked playfully, a bit of her normal self coming back. "Starving actually." The blonde replied, hopping out of the car after Emily had opened her door for her. "Still such a romantic." She whispered softly, enjoying how the brunette always seemed to take care of her. She followed Emily to the booth and sat down. The blonde looked over the menu and then back up at Emily. "Let's share." She responded, feeling in the mood to make this moment just a tiny bit romantic. After all, a week without Emily had made her miss even the trivial things.

"Okay, I'll let you choose the type of pizza." Emily smirked. She kept her eyes on Alison, almost as though she was analyzing the blonde; however, she was just happy to be back to being somewhat close to her. She missed the little things, the way she batted her eyelashes, the way that when she'd smirk, her dimples would come popping out. It was always the little things that made her happy. After taking a few short breaths, the waitress appeared. She knew that Alison loved the meat-lovers pizza, therefore she ordered that without even letting the blonde speak. "We'll take the meat-lovers special, a medium please, with fries, onion rings, and two of the house shakes?" She handed the waitress the menu after ordering, then turned her attention to Alison.

"Mmm, milkshakes. I remember the first time we got them together. I got strawberry, my favorite and you got chocolate and you had the idea to mix them. Turned out pretty good actually." Alison smirked, letting her dimples pop out. She handed over her menu absently, her gaze still on Emily. "You ordered my favorite pizza. I thought you didn't like it though." Alison questioned, her heart warming at Emily's kindness. "Still the same old sweet Emily. Don't you dare change that." Alison reached over and gently took Emily's hand in her own.

"I grew to like it, come on. When we ordered pizza it was ALWAYS your favorite pizza, after eating it a dozen times, you learn to love it, trust me." Emily couldn't help but chuckle softly when she heard the words that came out of Alison's mouth. The blonde really did remember a lot more than she led on to. Before Alison left, the two girls would share everything, Alison never wanting to share with anyone other than Emily. "And yeah, mixing those shakes was messy, I remember!" She laughed, speaking happily, remembering all the events and memories they shared. "We managed to get some in our hair.." She looked back, remembering it all. "A lot of stuff that happened, I remember as well, but it surprises me that you remember so much, Ali." Emily stroked Alison's hand gently, looking deeply into her icy blue eyes.

"Well I'm glad I influenced you to like my favorites." Alison laughed and nudged Emily playfully. "Yeah I had to take an extra long shower to get my hair to stop being so sticky." The blonde smiled brightly and leaned across the table to kiss Emily's cheek gently. She then sat back down and looked back into Emily's dark brown eyes. "I know I don't show a lot of what I'm feeling or thinking but I do remember everything when it comes to you, Emmy. You're a part of all my best memories." Alison squeezed Emily's hand just a little tighter. "You aren't the only one who enjoyed all those things. I was just so good at hiding my emotions."

"Well, you've always been pretty.. un-emotional, if that even makes sense, but we're all the way we are for a reason, and I'd never try to change you. Even if we've been through more good than bad." Emily couldn't help but let a little blush cover her cheeks. When she was with Alison, she felt like this completely other person that she'd never met before, sometimes it was good, sometimes it was bad, but either way, she'd always loved the blonde, no matter how confusing or hard the situation got; and the situation Alison was in right now would definitely test their relationship. Emily leaned her back over the booth and sat up comfortably, placing her feet over Alison's. As the shakes arrived, Emily took the straws out of the wrappers, giving Alison her own. "It's been so long since I've had one."

"I have emotions, Emily. I can't push them away but I just don't like showing them." Alison's voice took on a somewhat defensive tone. Emily had all good intentions, but the blonde felt slightly offended by her word choice. She shook it off though, noticing from the brunette's blushing, that all was okay for now. She knew that bringing this baby into their lives would prove to be a huge challenge but somehow she knew they'd be able to handle it. The blonde had faith in their relationship again and it was thanks to Emily's decision to give her a chance to earn her forgiveness. She took a long sip of her shake and smiled. "Mmm, still as good as I remember."

After a few minutes of having their milkshakes in their hands, Emily saw the waitress approach with their pizza. "It smells so good." She added, looking at the pizza, surprised that drool wasn't going down to her chin. Once it was placed on their table, Emily served Alison first with a slice, then cut herself a piece and placed it on her plate. "I'm starving.." Before finishing her sentence, she placed a slice against her lips and bit it, almost eating half the pizza with one bite. She finally cut herself a second piece, though handed it to Alison once she noticed the blonde was finally eating. "Good, do you like it?" She questioned her, moving a little closer to the blonde on the booth.

Alison breathed in the scent of the freshly cooked pizza. For once the smell of food made her mouth water. Finally she felt like she could eat again without feeling sick or wanting to run to her room, completely forgetting her hunger, as she'd been doing the entire past week. She took the slice Emily had given her and ate it slowly, making sure her body was going to accept any food before she rushed herself. She was glad to find that the feeling of nausea didn't come and she quickly finished her first slice, eagerly taking the second one from Emily. "Thanks, Emmy. It's really good." She spoke enthusiastically and slowly licked some of the sauce off her lips.

"I'm happy you're eating." Emily whispered, truly wanting the blonde to take in some food considering it was good for the unborn child's growth. Emily stopped after two slices and then placed the straw against her lips, taking a soft sip from her milkshake. "If there's any left, you can take it home with you, if you're able to eat it, then it'll be good for leftovers." Emily smiled innocently and brightly, moving her feet away from Alison's. She enjoyed being out with her. But most of all, she enjoyed being out of Rosewood in general. "You really won't let me pay, huh?" She knew there was no arguing with Alison when it came to paying for meals.

"It feels really good to be able to enjoy food again." Alison whispered back after taking a long sip of her own milkshake. "Yeah, that'll be good. I'm sure soon I'll be waking up with hunger cravings in the middle of the night. Better get used to it now." She smiled softly and thanked the waitress who had come back with their fries and onion rings. Alison plopped a fry into her mouth and chewed it slowly, shaking her head after she'd swallowed. "Nope. This time it's on me, Killer." She smirked once again letting her dimples show.

"Okay, okay. Well, thank you." Emily smiled gratefully. She was now sitting directly beside the blonde, a genuinely happy smile upon her lips. She looked over at her, then down to her stomach; not quite sure what she was thinking about; however she seemed to be deep in thought. After grabbing an onion ring and grabbing fries as well, she ate them slowly and finally began to talk once again. "And I forgot to say so earlier, but you don't look like a zombie, you actually look amazing for someone who hasn't slept well the past week." Emily leaned into Alison just a little bit, her lips not quite touching the blonde's, however; she was breathing warm air over her face.

"You don't need to thank me, Em. It's the least I could do." Alison was happy to be able to do something simple and see that it made Emily this happy. The blonde reached out and took an onion ring, eating it slowly. She held her milkshake close to her and she drained the cup of its contents. "Mm, this milkshake is the best!" She licked her lips of the last of its remnants and smiled brightly as she turned to look at Emily. "Well thank you, but I feel like a wreck. Although the food helped a lot. Thanks for getting me out for the night." She looked into Emily's eyes, becoming speechless as she felt her warm breath against her face.

Before even getting the chance to kiss Alison, Emily pulled away and smiled, letting the blonde eat as much as she could. "Eat, more. Trust me." Emily smiled and took a final piece of onion and ate it. She kept close to Alison, making sure the blonde had enough to eat before they both left. "Can we get the check, please?" Emily asked politely as she asked the waitress so they could both head out. As soon as the waitress arrived with it, she handed it to Alison without even hesitating. "Here, I won't even look at it, wouldn't want you to get angry." She joked around, standing up from the table, offering her hand to Alison and helping her stand up. "I'll let you pay, and I'll wait at the car, okay?" She planted a sweet kiss over Alison's cheeks.

Alison took another slice of pizza and quickly finished it, realizing Emily was right. She definitely needed to eat more. She took a few more French fries as well and even a couple more onion rings. Once she finally finished, she also asked a waitress for a box for all the leftovers. The blonde took Emily's hand and stood up. "Okay, Emmy, but I couldn't be mad at you." She smiled softly and tapped Emily's nose gently. She took the check from Emily and slid her credit card in. When the waitress arrived, she handed it to her and thanked the waitress for the box. Alison packed up the rest of the food and waited for the waitress to bring her bill back.

As soon as she saw the blonde come out of the restaurant, Emily unlocked the car doors and sat inside. Once Alison joined her, she took the box of food and placed it in the back seat. She turned to Alison and caressed her cheek gently. "Just one more place, and I promise to bring you right back home, okay? You need to sleep too. Those dark circles under your eyes are a little terrifying." Emily laughed a little jokingly, then turned her eyes to the road. She drove off away from Ravenswood and into the direction of Rosewood, not wanting to tell Alison where she was going just yet, knowing the blonde would be skeptical about Emily's idea.

Alison signed the receipt and put her card away. She grabbed the box of leftovers and made her way to the car. The blonde slid into the passengers seat once Emily had unlocked the car doors. She yawned and stretched her body as best she could in the car with the seatbelt restricting her. "Okay, Emmy. But you're right. I'm exhausted." She yawned once more and rolled down the window just a little, the cold breeze helping her to stay awake for whatever Emily had planned. "I told you I looked like a zombie." She nudged Emily playfully.

"I hope you won't hate me for this Ali." Emily sighed, knowing she might touch a nerve with what.. well, more with where she was about to bring Alison. After finding a spot in the empty parking lot, turning to the blonde and taking a deep breath. "Ready?" She whispered, opening the car door and going to open Alison's. She took her hand and headed towards where she wanted to go. She walked into the mausoleum, where Alison's mom's ashes had been placed in a specific spot. As soon as she saw Alison's reaction, she felt her pull away. "No, Ali. You have to." She walked to where it said "Jessica DiLaurentis." and stopped. "You have unresolved issues, speak them out, okay? I'll stay here or I'll wait outside."

"I could never hate you, Em." Alison spoke sweetly, though she was suddenly nervous about what Emily was thinking. The blonde nodded and hopped out of the car. She took Emily's hand and intertwined her fingers with the brunette's. As soon as she took notice of where Emily was going, Alison began to pull away. She yanked her hand back and stood still. "Em. No. I can't." She tried to run back to the car, but Emily was too quick and clung to her wrist, forcing her to stay. "I...I can't do this." She whispered, tears already forming in her eyes as she practically begged for Emily to let her leave.

"Ali, I didn't come here to hurt you..." Emily frowned, knowing this might probably be a bad idea, however she saw the way Alison looked when she spoke about her mom, sure, she missed her, but she also tried to bury her daughter alive, and that sure didn't settle well with a lot of people. "I saw the look you had on your face when you talked about missing her. There's something you wanna say to her, Ali. There has to be. You haven't seen her in a long time, and you need to do this, you just don't know it yet.." Emily mumbled staying back a little bit, letting Alison approach her mother's tombstone. She really didn't want to force the blonde, but she knew that it was best for her.

"Emily. I can't. This is too much." Alison protested, the emotions becoming too much for her to handle. Emily was pushing her and she knew deep down the brunette was right but it just had been so hard on her lately with everything going on. "I miss her so much, Em." Alison whispered through her tears. She finally approached mom's tombstone and reached up to trace over her name that was engraved into it. "Mom...I miss you. I wish you were here. You'd get me through this pregnancy. I...it's so hard without you. But..." Alison paused, thinking about the grudge she still held against her mother. "I...I don't know how to forgive you for burying me. Why didn't you hear me yelling that I was alive? You almost killed me instead of saving me." Alison whispered her words, her hand still upon her mother's engraved name as a fresh set of tears rolled down her cheeks.

Emily stood back, wanting to give Alison a little bit of privacy to talk to her mother. She listened in on the conversation, sighing softly, knowing how much trouble the blonde went through, especially since the fact that Jessica did bury her body alive. Emily finally went and walked up behind Alison, placing a hand over her shoulder, caressing it to make sure she knew it was okay. After hearing what the blonde had said, she couldn't help but take a deep breath, not wanting to let a tear escape her eyes, instead; she wiped the tears from Alison's cheek, letting her finish up with all that she had to say, knowing it would feel good once she got it off her chest.

"I don't know if I can ever let that go, that you so easily buried me. But I do miss you. So much. And I love you even if you made one of the biggest mistakes you could've made." Alison finished and decided that was enough. She couldn't speak anymore as what she'd already said took a lot out of her. The blonde let her back fall against Emily's chest, leaning on her for support. "Just..hold me for a minute?" She asked the brunette in a whisper, knowing that her embrace would be the comfort she needed. "Goodbye, mom." She finally whispered, letting Emily comfort her. She wanted to leave and never come back after finally saying her goodbyes but she couldn't move just yet. Emily's hold on her kept her from feeling weak in that moment.


	4. Chapter 4

The brunette proudly held Alison, her arms wrapped around her stomach. "You did so good Ali, so good. I'm proud of you, I hope you know that." Emily whispered quietly, hoping that it would comfort her just a little to hear her voice. Emily simply let Alison cry it out, she let the blonde rid herself of her emotions, knowing it had taken a lot for her to say all of those words when it came to her mother. "You're okay, I'm here. I've got you love. I just, I love you. You're stronger than you look. You did amazing. And I know your mom loves you, she did this upon panic, it's harsh Ali, I know, and I'm not taking sides.. I'm just..." She stroked her waist softly, knowing that soon she'd be showing.

"I...I can't forget what she did. It's still a part of my nightmares. But I miss her too. I don't know how to be a teenage girl without a mother. It's really hard, Em...to have a dad who's so wrapped up in his work, a brother who's so drunk half the time he can't remember anything, and then to lose my mom..." Alison let her tears spill out, not caring that she was practically having a meltdown at her mother's tombstone and in front of Emily at that. "You're lucky to have parents who adore you, Em. That's why I won't let you walk away from them just to stand by me. And I love you too. So much." Alison finally regained her composure, letting Emily wipe away the last of her tears. "Can we just go home? I don't want to be here anymore."

"Alison, you need to understand by being with you, it's a choice. They're my parents, they'll be upset, but they love me and I love them, and even if they don't want me with you, they can't stop me from loving you, from spending time with you.. I hope you know that. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to love you and not mind what they say. I'm not walking away from them, I'm starting my own life, I'm making my own decisions..." Emily finally stopped talking and pulled away, caressing her cheek. "I'll drive you home." She took Alison's hand and looked at the blonde. "Do you at last feel a bit better after this, or did I make it worse?"

"Emily, when did you get so grown up? I still remember when you ran to me and your biggest fears were things like whether or not I'd approve of your fashion choices. You've changed so much, but in all the best ways. I'm really proud of you. And I hope that your life decisions will always include me in some way. I love you so much." Alison smiled brightly and rubbed over Emily's knuckles with her thumb. "Well at first I felt a lot worse. You know I hate to feel vulnerable and here, with all those thoughts swirling around my mind and the overwhelming emotions, I felt so weak. But I never got the chance to say goodbye to her because of the investigation so I'm glad you gave me that chance. Goodbyes are the only perfect things we get. Isn't that what you said before?"

"Goodbyes hurt, but in time, they feel so good." Emily nodded and squeezed Alison's hand. She headed outside and took a breath of fresh air. With Alison by her side, Emily felt free, she felt beyond happy, even if things were going to get hard, and very soon. She walked them both to the car and let Alison breathe for a moment before opening her mouth. "Are you going to be okay tonight alone?" She placed a hand over her knee, gently stroking it, lifting it up to her thigh; without any dirty intentions. She gave her knee a tight squeeze and batted her eyelashes once, not breaking her gaze from Alison's eyes; as she slid the keys in the ignition, she turned to face Alison, waiting for her to speak.

Alison didn't say anymore. She was exhausted and all the emotions had taken a toll on the little energy she had. When they were finally outside again, Alison breathed in the fresh air, the peaceful night relaxing her. It felt so good to have Emily around again, to have the brunette care for her and to simply touch her even in the innocent ways. She knew that there was still a long way to go to earn Emily's forgiveness but for now, she was truly happy. Alison blinked a few times and shook her head. "I haven't dreamt of her in a long time because I pushed away the thoughts but if I dream of her burying me again, I don't want to be alone. Don't leave, Emmy. Please." Alison looked at Emily, allowing her to see the fear in her icy blue eyes.

Emily nodded and bit at her lip gently. She removed her hand from Alison's knee, not breaking eye contact with her. "How about we sleep at your house. I wouldn't mind being away from my parents, they're being overly nice and to be honest it creeps me out." Emily laughed it out, pulling out of the parking lot. She headed to the DiLaurentis house and parked in the lot once she got there, taking a breath, closing her eyes, wondering if she should in fact stay the night or not. She opened her door for the last time during the night. She waited for Alison on the porch and once she joined her, she picked her up, opening the door to her house, placing her on her feet once she got inside. "Do you want to go to bed right now?"

"You were supposed to move in a week ago anyway. I'm sure dad won't mind you staying." Alison responded, knowing she'd feel a lot better to fall asleep with Emily and wake up to see her in the morning. "I'll even make you breakfast in the morning if you want." The blonde offered sweetly, wanting to show her appreciation for everything Emily had done and was still doing for her. It meant so much to her, but Alison wasn't so good at conveying that in words. Alison climbed out of the car when they reached her house and joined Emily on the porch. When the brunette picked her up, she held on tight until she was set down on her feet again. "Woah, Em...what was that for?" Alison asked, laughing softly. "And we can put on a movie in my room until we fall asleep. Is that okay?"

"You better get used to it, I want to take care of you." Emily added, a small smile forming over her lips. She looked around the house; nothing had changed in the week that they had been separated. "We can do whatever you'd like, you're the boss tonight, how does that sound?" Emily locked the door behind them and headed upstairs to the blonde's room, taking off her jacket and hanging it up on the chair where her vanity was. As soon as Alison came upstairs, Emily closed her bedroom door and then opened the television, quickly turning on Netflix to find a decent movie to watch throughout the night.

"I think I can get used to that fairly easily." Alison winked playfully. "I think that sounds like a perfect night." The blonde smiled brightly and headed upstairs, following Emily into her own bedroom. Alison laid down on her bed and let Emily look through the Netflix movie list, knowing the brunette would choose something she loved. "Em? I hate to bother you with anything else but last week when I couldn't sleep or eat, dad started making me this vanilla tea. It kind of helps me relax and go to bed. Would you mind making me some? I'd go downstairs and do it myself but I'm really exhausted." The blonde gave Emily her cute puppy dog eyes. She knew she should've spoken up sooner but with all that had been going on, she'd gotten distracted and forgot.

"You don't even have to give me those puppy dog eyes, Ali. Of course I'll go make you some tea." Emily spoke softly, planting a soft kiss over Alison's head. She walked out of the bedroom and walk down the stairs, heading into the kitchen. She went through a couple of drawers, finally finding some vanilla tea. "Hm, smells good." She thought to herself before boiling some water and preparing Alison's favorite mug. Once all was done, she went back upstairs to join Alison who seemed to be quite cozy laying in the middle of her bed. "Here you are." She set it over on the night desk beside Alison, sitting down beside her afterwards.

"Thanks Emmy, you're the best." Alison kissed Emily's cheek and let her go down to make her tea. She got up slowly and changed into her pajamas. Afterwards, she grabbed her old scrapbook. She'd made one in school years ago but then she'd made a second one with just pictures of her and Emily. When she came back, the blonde had added all their recent pictures. She turned the pages carefully looking over all their old memories. When Emily came back, Alison shut her scrapbook and smiled at the brunette. "Thanks, Em." She sat up a little and scooted over to make room for Emily on the bed.

"What was that..?" Emily only asked when Alison hurried to shut the yearbook. The brunette tilted her head to the side and bit at her lip. "I saw a photo of me.." She added, smiling sweetly. Emily sat down beside Alison and looked over at the TV, ,noticing that the blonde had decided to put on a horror movie. She kept her eyes on Alison, wondering what she'd answer to her question, if she'd show her the yearbook or not. Emily never really kept anything like that, only keeping the yearly yearbooks that her mom would make her buy, other than that, she wasn't big on keeping school memories.

Alison smiled brightly and slid the book into Emily's lap. "It's a scrapbook, actually. I made it back in seventh grade. I have one of all of us but this one is just you and me. It's got all the pictures we ever took together from when we first met up until now. Here, look." The blonde opened it up to the first page and showed Emily. She let the brunette flip through the pages at her own leisure, hoping she'd like that the blonde had saved all their memories in a scrapbook. It had taken Alison a lot of time and effort, as she'd decorated each page and written captions or things that she wanted to remember that went with the memories.

Emily couldn't help but smile. "Wow, you really kept a bunch of these photos..." She kissed the side of Alison's cheek, a hand caressing it afterwards. She then continued to flip through the pages, remembering each and every memory that came with each photo. She moved a hair away from her own face and took a soft breath. "You have up until you proposed to me?" She asked, remembering each picture like they were just been taken yesterday, it was this side of Alison that Emily had never seen before, and truth be told, she thought it was amazing, that the blonde remembered everything and anything, all the memories that they'd shared in so long were in the book.

Alison nodded slowly. "Yeah, I put it in after you said yes. But I didn't know I was going to need the space for a different memory now." The blonde simply meant that she'd now have to replace the proposal with a new one whenever Emily was ready. She looked back at the photo once the brunette had made it to the page. Her hand gently caressed the edges of the photo as she glanced down at it. "That day was so perfect. It was like everything was falling into place." The blonde looked over at Emily, happy to see that the brunette enjoyed her scrapbook as much as she'd hoped. "We were so happy then. But there are still more empty pages to fill. I hope I get lots more memories with you to put in the book."

"You should still be happy now. But I'm making you go to sleep, you look dead tired.." Emily whispered to her. She closed the book gently and put it beside them on the night desk. Emily then stood up and helped Alison slide down the sheets, after; she turned off the lights and lowered the TV volume. She finally went through Alison's drawers, finding short shorts and a tank top to change into. "I'll be back." She flashed her a smile, walking into the washroom, she brushed her teeth with the toothbrush she'd left here, after, she brushed her hair and washed her face, and got changed. Finally, she walked in the bedroom and sat beside Alison. "Sleep, please? I don't want you to be sick."

"I am happy, Em. Because you're here." Alison whispered back before letting out a yawn. The moment Emily mentioned sleep, she realized just how exhausted she was. Alison slipped under the sheets and with Emily's help, she pulled the covers over her body. She lifted her head slightly to look over at Emily. "Hurry back." She whispered softly. "Okay, but you can stay up and watch something. I don't mind." Alison slid down so she was laying in bed instead of sitting up. She grabbed Emily's arms gently and draped them over her own waist. "There, now I can sleep." She smiled satisfactorily and slowly closed her eyes.

"Why don't we do something a little easier.." Emily laughed a little bit and shook her head. She sat up comfortably and brought Alison's head over her chest, wrapping one of her arms around the blonde's shoulders. "There." She smiled, kissing the top of Alison's head softly, nodding in agreement. "I might just put on The Big Bang Theory or something like that. Comedy helps me sleep." She added, smiling. The brunette flipped through the channels until she finally found the program that she wanted to watch. With Alison asleep in her arms, she too became quite tired, she simply fell asleep to the sound of the television, finding peace and happiness in her sleep.

"Hmm? What?" Alison mumbled sleepily. She'd already started to doze off but quickly opened her eyes so her and Emily could both adjust their sleeping positions. The blonde rested her head against Emily's chest and let her eyes flutter shut once Emily had her arms wrapped around her again. It was that embrace that allowed her to feel safe and sleep soundly once again. "Mm, okay Emmy. You make a comfy pillow." Alison mumbled, so exhausted she barely knew what she was saying, much less what Emily had said. As soon as she'd found a comfortable position, Alison quickly fell asleep, not even bothering to fight it as her body really needed the rest.

Emily gently stroked the side of Alison's shoulders until she fell asleep. The brunette had been exhausted as well, and she truly did need the sleep that she had lost during the last few weeks, it was hell to be away from Alison for so long, but now that things were slowly and surely falling back into place, she knew that she could sleep without any signs of struggle. She slept through all the night, the sun shining through the blinds in the room once the clock hit 7 am. Emily moved around just a little bit and turned her back to Alison's face, still sleeping soundly.

Alison slept through the night, the first night since she'd found out she was pregnant that she slept peacefully through the night without any nightmares. She didn't even wake up when the sun shone through her window, nor when Emily shifted beside her. The blonde was truly exhausted and her body was taking advantage of the peace and quiet and for once she was able to sleep in. She rolled over onto her side subconsciously so she was even closer to Emily, her warm breath blowing onto the back of the brunette's neck.

Emily yawned once she shifted sides, her eyes opening up just a little bit. She enjoyed Alison's breath on her neck; giving her goose bumps as soon as she felt it. The brunette took soft breaths, quickly falling back asleep. It wasn't long after that she was sleeping soundly, nothing or no one in the world being able to improve this moment; she felt great, she was happy to have fallen asleep next to the blonde and to be able to wake up next to her as well. Emily slept until the clock hit 10 am, noticing that they'd been sleeping for nearly 11 hours. She turned around, not wanting to startle the blonde who slept peacefully. "Ali?" She whispered out, batting her eyelashes.

Alison shifted slightly in her sleep, her chest now pressing into Emily's back. Even in her subconscious, she could sense the brunette's presence and it made her smile in her sleep. The blonde slept soundly for a few more hours, her body slowly recovering from the regained peaceful rest it needed. She stayed close to Emily, enjoying the morning simply because she could sense that the brunette was beside her. She blinked a few times when she heard the brunette's sleepy voice whisper out her name. Slowly she let her eyes open as she adjusted to the sunlight. "Hmm?" She mumbled out in her own sleepy voice.

"I completely forgot that we have school orientation at 1 today, and it's 11..." Emily whispered to her, quietly sitting up, stretching her body and yawning at the same time; afterwards, rubbing her eyes to adjust to the sunlight slowly. She finally stood up from the bed and leaned into Alison, kissing the side of her cheek. "Are you going to come?" She asked Alison, not wanting to force her to go, however; she knew it would be good for the blonde to get out of the house a little bit, even if for a couple of hours. The brunette walked to Alison's desk and grabbed her brush, taking out the knots from her brown silky hair.

"Ugh...school.." Alison groaned out. She didn't mind going to school so much as the thought of how she'd deal with the comments when she started to show. The blonde slowly sat up and stretched her body. She rubbed her eyes and chewed on her bottom lip as she contemplated the idea of school. "Yeah...I guess I'll go. But what am I going to do when I start to show? Everyone is going to start talking and as if I didn't have enough going on with everyone who hates me." Alison sighed softly.

"We'll figure something out, since when do you worry about that kind of stuff?" Emily narrowed her eyebrows and then walked over to where Alison was, she knelt right in front of her and placed her hands over the blonde's knees. "Live in the present." She added, almost sounding like she was philosophically speaking. The brunette chuckled a little bit and bit over her lower lip, placing her hand over the blonde's stomach, trying to comfort her the best way she could. "You'll look great even when you do start showing, I know you'll come up with something, or you can just get pulled out of school or something, who knows. Online courses!" Emily finally shouted it out.

"I don't know. I guess I never realized I had so many enemies. My mom's life was taken because of that. I guess I'm just worried, people will use this against me again. I mean I...we have to protect this baby." Alison leaned in closer to Emily and smiled softly. "You're so positive. It's hard to believe that anything bad will happen when I'm around you. I really love that about you, Em." Alison smirked and tossed her hair over her shoulder. "I do look great all the time, don't I?" She winked, channeling some of her old cocky self into her new more caring personality. "I can face it if you're by my side, Killer." She spoke confidently and stood up to look through her closet to see what to wear.

"Come on, I'm by your side right now, I'm not going anywhere." Emily whispered to her, tapping her shoulder. "Oh, uhm. I came here in those clothes last night, could I perhaps borrow some jeans and a sweat shirt or something." She asked politely and then sat at the edge of the bed, waiting for Alison to get something for her; not wanting to shuffle through the blonde's stuff. She finally got up and walked in front of the mirror, powdering her soft skin, once again brushing her brown locks.

"I know you're not. I'm just not used to being so afraid. It's a weird feeling." Alison picked out a yellow summer dress and a denim jacket to wear over it and grabbed a fresh pair of panties and a new bra. She turned to Emily after hearing her ask for some clothes. "Yeah, of course, Emmy. You know you could've just picked out anything of mine yourself." She looked through her closet and pulled out a pair of jeans she knew would fit Emily perfectly. She then pulled out one of her favorite shirts and handed it to Emily along with a light jacket to go over it. "Will this do?" She asked sweetly, handing the clothes over to the brunette.

Emily looked over the clothes that Alison had picked for her. She nodded, a sweet smile taking over her lips. She took the clothes and walked into the washroom, quickly getting changed and washing her face. As soon as she got out, she walked over to the windowsill and opened the blinds; allowing the bright and pure light to escape through the windows and light up the entire room. Not wanting to straighten or curl her hair, she simply ran a hand through it and pulled out an elastic that had been around her wrist over night; tying up her hair in a nice ponytail. "Hm." She smiled, satisfied. As soon as they were both ready, Emily placed a hand on the doorknob and turned to Alison. "Could we go have breakfast?"

Alison smiled at Emily, glad to see the brunette was in a good mood. She stood up and undressed, slipping on her fresh pair of panties and bra. She put the dress on over her head and slid it down her body. Once she had her dress on, Alison walked into her bathroom and brushed her teeth and washed her face. She then brushed her blonde locks and grabbed a rubber band. The blonde quickly tied her hair in a braid and then walked back out to slip on her denim jacket. She selected a pair of heels that matched and slid her feet into them. Alison checked herself out in the mirror, smiling as she was happy with her appearance. She walked towards her door with Emily and nodded. "Of course we can. Pancakes and coffee here or at The Brew?"

"That's completely up to you, okay?" Emily laughed, following Alison closely, as soon as she reached the bottom of the stairway. "Why don't we just eat here, save some money, it'll take less long here anyways, then we can go to school and get orientation done with anyways." She smiled, walking to the kitchen, trying to not make a sound. Emily looked around and found some pancake mix. "Mm." She turned to Alison. "Want me to make you some pancakes, would your stomach be able to handle that?" She asked sweetly, walking up to the blonde, placing a hand over her waist, gently squeezing it.

"I think that sounds good. I don't really feel like going out just yet anyway. Dad is already off to work so we can enjoy breakfast at home, just us." Alison made her way to the kitchen with the brunette. She hopped up onto the counter and dangled her legs, swinging them back and forth. "Can they be chocolate chip ones?" The blonde licked her lips, already thinking of Emily's pancakes. "You make the best food, Em." She always loved when the brunette would cook for her. Alison smiled back at Emily. "Should I make the coffee?"

"Sure, I'll add chocolate chips for you." Emily looked through the drawers and cabinets in the house, finally finding chocolate chips that Alison would like. As soon as she added some to the batter, she took out a pan and put some oil in it, starting to cook the first one. She then stood between Alison's legs and pinched her thighs gently, winking over at her. "Added, just for you." She whispered to her, staying in between her legs, not daring to move an inch, instead; she simply enjoyed the moment she was having with Alison.

"Thanks, Emmy. You're the best." Alison spoke in an extremely delighted tone. Simple things truly made her happy when it came to all the little details Emily always paid attention to. The brunette knew each and every one of Alison's favorites without Alison ever telling her more than once or twice. The blonde watched Emily carefully, enjoying being so well taken care of. "You make me feel so special." Alison whispered back, surprised by her own words, as they were similar to words Emily often said to her.

Emily couldn't help but lean into Alison just a little bit, the tip of her lips touching the blonde's. She kissed her gently, just lightly, their lips barely touching. As soon as she pulled back, she walked calmly to the stove and prepared the rest of the pancakes, making sure there were enough for the two of them. "Set the table?" She asked Alison, handing her over a small smile as she prepared the plates and brought them to the table once it was prepared. Emily brought her chair beside Alison and sat down, reaching over for the whipped cream to place on her pancakes.


	5. Chapter 5

Emily couldn't help but lean into Alison just a little bit, the tip of her lips touching the blonde's. She kissed her gently, just lightly, their lips barely touching. As soon as she pulled back, she walked calmly to the stove and prepared the rest of the pancakes, making sure there were enough for the two of them. "Set the table?" She asked Alison, handing her over a small smile as she prepared the plates and brought them to the table once it was prepared. Emily brought her chair beside Alison and sat down; reaching over for the whipped cream to place on her pancakes.

Alison kissed Emily back gently. She turned her head to watch the brunette cook once she'd pulled back and returned to the stove. The blonde hopped off the counter and grabbed the plates. "Sure, Em." She set forks in front of both the girls' chairs and sat down, waiting for Emily to bring them their plates of pancakes. She waited until the brunette finished with the whipped cream and then took it from her to put some onto her own pancakes. "Mm, these smell really good." She licked her lips, practically drooling at the scent of Emily's freshly cooked pancakes.

Emily took a few bites from her food until she finished it altogether. Once she was done, she waited for Alison to finish as well; then the brunette stood up and put both of their plates in the dishwasher. After setting it up and turning to face the blonde, Emily winked and spoke up. "Ready for Orientation?" She laughed a little bit and put on her jacket and her little boots. "It'll go by quickly. We just pick out our courses and then we can be out of there, okay?" She walked towards Alison and frowned, knowing the blonde didn't really want to go there.

Alison ate slowly, purposely, knowing she could drag out their nice morning instead of rushing to orientation. She really didn't want summer to end or to have to set foot in school again. The blonde sighed softly and nodded when she finally finished. "If we have to, then yes. I'm ready." She stood up and washed her hands and mouth before slipping on her heels. "I'm taking French again." Alison spoke excitedly, the one class she actually loved.

"Heels for orientation, huh. You really do still go all out." Emily smiled, remembering the last orientation she'd been too with Alison before she decided to leave. The blonde would always wear nice heels, a dress and a jean jacket to cover up considering it would get cold in late August. Emily grabbed the keys and then turned to Alison, who followed close by. "Who's driving?" She questioned her quietly, setting her hand over the handle of the door, turning it slowly and then stepping foot outside onto the front porch.

"Well yeah, you know I always wear heels and my denim jacket at orientation. Not everything about me has changed." Alison winked playfully, walked over to the door and headed out onto the porch with Emily. She stood for a moment in silence, just enjoying the cool fall breeze and looking over the fallen leaves. She loved when the leaves changed colors; it was actually really pretty to the blonde. "Oh, umm, I can drive since you drove us to dinner last night and considering it's a short drive to school." Alison pulled out her keys and hit the unlock button so the two could get in.

Emily pierced her lips and agreed to the fact that Alison offered to drive. She took a deep breath, enjoying the cool breeze that the weather had to offer. Emily really had no idea which courses she was going to take, that would also depend on which courses she needed in order for her deal to stand still at Stanford. She walked to the car and placed her hand on the handle, pulling it open. She sat down and buckled her seatbelt, waiting for Alison to follow and sit in the drivers seat. Once she did, the brunette turned to her and smiled. "It'll go by quickly, trust me. You can take the second semester at home and be home schooled or do it online, you'll be showing by then, but it'll be easy to cover up.." Emily frowned and looked down to Alison's stomach.

Alison could feel Emily's eyes on her stomach. She wrapped one of her arms around herself and drove with one hand. "I might just do a study abroad program for second semester. I still want to go to Paris someday with you. But I just think some time away from Rosewood would be good for me." She took a deep breath before continuing what she had to say. "I know things have changed because of this baby but I was going to ask if you'd think about studying abroad with me. That is if Stanford will accept the credits of course. But it's your decision, Em. And if you want to stay here and don't want me to leave, I promise I won't." She added, not wanting the brunette to think she was back to her old ways of running away and trying to hide from whatever problems she had to face.

The brunette sighed once she saw that Alison tried to hide her stomach. She knew it would take a while for the blonde to get used to it, to start showing soon.. she knew that Alison wasn't ready yet, but it would come in time. Emily shook her head and kept her eyes on Alison, batting her eyelashes a few times before speaking. "Ali." She mumbled out quietly, sighing once more. "You'll have to get used to it because whether you like it or not, it's coming." She hinted about the blonde's bump starting to show. She placed a free hand over Alison's arm, which was pressed firmly over her own stomach and then looked up at the blonde. "Or you can just create a wall around you..."

"I don't mind it when it's you, Em. But my dad, this town...there's already so much I have going on. After all, as Jenna said, I did come back from the dead. Sure I always act strong but I can only handle so much at once, Emmy. I just don't want to bring a baby into my life if I can't assure that he or she will be safe." Alison took another deep breath and let it out slowly. "Am I still going to be beautiful to you when I'm almost due and can't even see my own feet anymore?" She blurted out, suddenly thinking about how Emily was going to react when her bump started to grow. After all it wasn't the brunette's child to care for, and Alison still worried about the effect it would have on Emily to be a mother to a child that wasn't even hers.

"You do mind it, I see it in your eyes.. you're scared, and it's completely normal, I just want you to be okay, and I want us to try and be where we were before you found out.. before I found out you were pregnant. Everything will fall together in time, there's only so much I can say to try to convince you that it will be okay..." Emily sighed, knowing she was talking a lot in the moment, but Alison did need the support right now. Emily kept her hand over Alison's stomach for a mere second before pulling away and looking outside and admiring the familiar scenery.

"I want that too, Em. More than anything. But I don't expect you to just accept all of this overnight. I can't be selfish anymore. You're so optimistic and I need that. I believe you. I do. It's just not easy for me to face my fears. It's always been easier to shut the world out and act like I don't care. But you've changed me. You've made me better and that's why I care so much about how this affects you." Alison smiled weakly and moved her arm so Emily could leave her hand on her stomach if she wanted to. She focused on driving to their high school, thinking about what classes she would take.

Emily simply listened to what Alison said. She truly did change, she sounded a little more mature than when Emily truly did know her - and truth be told, she really wanted to get to know her more, and this pregnancy was either going to bring the two together even more, or going to separate them and break them apart. She bit at her lip and thought about what courses she was to take. She definitely did want to take Spanish and French, a math class, history, and Phys Ed for the rest of the time, and she wanted to focus on swimming, if the coach found that her shoulder was getting better.

Alison had no idea what she'd take. She hated almost all subjects. The only class she was sure of that she wanted to take was French. But she figured she'd just talk to Emily to help her decide. The brunette and her had always chosen classes together, ensuring that they'd have some of them together. She hoped that wasn't going to end simply because she'd been missing and hadn't been able to keep up their tradition while she'd been gone of course. She finally found a parking spot and took a deep breath. "This is it." She whispered softly.

Emily tried her best to comfort the distressed blonde that was beside her. "The girls are going to be there, and they're going to ask questions..." Emily sighed as she spoke, walking out of the car after Alison had parked. She walked over to the blonde and bit at her lip, placing a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. "Ignore the negative." She narrowed her eyebrows, laughing after the words she said. "Since when am I the positive speaker." She frowned and walked towards the entrance, a small smile appearing once her swim coach approached her and hugged her, speaking about how she'd be accepted into Stanford.

"I'm sure Spencer already filled them in with what she knew but can you take some of the questions? I'm really not in the mood for the girls today." Alison sighed softly and tucked a loose strand of her hair back in place. She stood up straight and walked confidently into school, though she gripped Emily's hand tightly as they walked. When the brunette broke free to hug her swim coach, Alison stood a distance back, looking around at who was there already. She turned away, almost ready to run when she saw the last person she'd ever want to see standing in the hallway. Noel Kahn. "Em..." Alison whispered, trying to get her attention. She needed to get out of there and fast but not without Emily.

Emily spoke with her coach, not quite ignoring Alison, but not acknowledging that the blond was speaking, little did she know that Noel Kahn was going to be there. The brunette smiled, taking some pamphlets from her swim coach and smiled even more once her coach said she could be the starter on the swim team if her doctor said her shoulder was well enough. As soon as she heard Alison's voice practically break, Emily turned around and saw Noel. "Shit." She mumbled to herself and walked in front of Alison. "Like you used to say, if you ignore it, it'll go away."

"Can we umm..." Alison tugged on Emily's arm and pulled her into their old French classroom. So many memories were held here and it was the one place that Alison found comfort in when at school. It was sort of her safe haven. She sat at her old desk, on top of it the way she'd always do when Emily would tell her to study. Her favorite memory was definitely planning her Paris trip and when she'd asked Emily to come along. "You and me in sweet Paris." She whispered softly and then looked over at Emily. "It's almost too good to be true now, isn't it?"

"Ali.. what the -..." Emily was cut off to the sensation of Alison dragging her off into the old classroom that she'd remembered from their little talks after school. She smiled and traced over a desk, turning to face Alison as she sat down over the desk that was once hers. "How long are we going away for...?" She replied, knowing what Alison would say to her turn. She remembered this feeling almost as though it was yesterday.

Alison gave Emily the cute little smirk in which her dimples showed. She knew how that expression always made the brunette melt and she wanted the two to share in the good memories they'd had together well before things had gotten so complicated. She licked her lips slowly as if contemplating Emily's question though she already knew her answer. She'd always known what she wanted, but it had just taken time to realize it and admit it. "How about forever?" She finally whispered sweetly.

Emily bent down beside Alison, looking in her eyes. "You still have that charm that just gets me every time." Emily admitted, placing her hands over Alison's and blinking once or twice before standing up. "We should go pick our courses. Just ignore Noel. He doesn't need to know anything and you don't owe him everything. Just remember that." Emily walked towards the door, placing her hand on the handle and then opened the door to the hall, waiting for Alison to follow her.

Alison's smile instantly grew brighter upon hearing Emily's words. "I'm glad I still have that effect. And I meant what I said. Forever, Em. That's what I want with you." The blonde nodded and stood up. "You're right. Let's go. Help me though? I have no idea what to take and I really don't want the counselor choosing for me. I'm not getting stuck in Phys Ed again." Alison rolled her eyes. She knew Emily loved it, but she hated exercise especially at school. The blonde followed Emily out into the hall and held her hand tightly afterwards as the two made their way over to the registration tables.

The brunette managed to pick out her courses, and of course, her schedule was filled with swim practice, physiotherapy and even more swimming. She had no idea how she'd be able to manage Alison, swimming, her courses, work and homework all together, though, she vowed to herself that she'd somehow make it work. After her class choices had been confirmed, she walked over to the other girls, handing them out a small smile and a hug, chit-chatting with them about how their last few weeks of summer had been.

Alison chose her courses as well with Emily's help. She made sure to keep her course load light so that she wouldn't get too much homework. After all, she had plenty of other things to worry about that required her full attention. The blonde spotted the girls but she kept her distance, preparing herself for the likely confrontation. She finally walked over after Emily had already greeted them all. Alison stood beside Emily and smiled softly at each of the girls, though she chose not to say anything.

Emily knew that there was still some tension between the girls and Alison, therefore she tried her best to make it less awkward. However, she didn't want to stop speaking to the girls just because she was on good terms with Alison. She talked with them for a moment longer until she'd been given out her locker number. Afterwards, she walked towards it, letting Alison speak to them, hoping that maybe just MAYBE they'd patch things up; though it was unlikely.

Alison frowned slightly when she saw Emily was leaving. But she knew she couldn't rely on the brunette for everything. She stood up straight and made eye contact with the girls. "Look I have a lot going on. I don't exactly care if you hate me but you need to respect that I love Emily and she loves me. Whatever is going on between us, we're working through it together. I refuse to tell anyone but her details but let's just say that I may not be able to finish second semester here." She finished speaking and allowed the girls to respond. Of course, it was Aria, the sweetest of the three after Emily, who nodded and gave Alison a gentle hug. Both Spencer and Hanna simply nodded and of course Spencer was the one to speak up to tell Alison that she'd be abandoned for good if she dared to hurt Emily again.

Emily opened up her locker and shoved in some of the binders and books that she'd picked up from the library. After locking it with the padlock that had been given to her, she walked over to the girls and stood beside Alison, placing a comforting arm around her shoulders. She compared courses with Hanna and Spencer, knowing she'd have the most courses with them in particular, Aria would always be in art classes, which weren't Emily's forte. With a small smile on her face, she adjusted her sweater and bit at her lip, turning to Alison. "Practice Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday run late.. I won't have any time for myself those days.." She frowned.

"I'll stay and watch, that way you have a ride home." Alison offered, knowing she'd enjoy watching Emily get back into the water again. She loved watching the brunette because the look she had when she swam was of pure bliss. The blonde pulled out her own schedule, comparing it with the girls as well. Luckily around Emily, the girls treated her without any hostility. They knew better than to cause any unnecessary drama. And besides, Alison had given her sincere word that she was going to work to make everything good with Emily again no matter what it took.

"Looks like I have French and History with you Ali, first semester." Emily smirked, knowing that French was the one course that she loved taking with Alison, it was entertaining to learn a new language and to speak about France.. and Paris. As soon as the other girls went and found their lockers, Emily sighed and faced the blonde once more. "They're quieter around me now.." She frowned and looked up at the ceiling then down at her feet. "They hate that we're so close."

"Perfect. My favorite class and the one I always get bored in." Alison laughed softly remembering how many times Emily and her had passed notes in history class to pass the time. "Je t'aime ma belle." Alison whispered only loud enough for Emily to hear, using one of the few French phrases she'd actually remembered. Alison shook her head and frowned slightly. "It's me they hate, Em. Spencer practically threatened me if I ever hurt you again." The blonde admitted, not daring to look into Emily's eyes, afraid to see sadness in them again.

"Do you want to go find your locker, or do you want to ditch and go home? I have a swim meet tonight, I get to jump in the water for the first time for a 4-man relay. That way they can see if my shoulder is ready or not..." Emily sounded excited. It had been months since she'd competed in the pool, and she really was looking forward to it. The brunette sighed and looked around, some students still looking around however; nobody that she really knew or cared for, to say the least.

"We can go. I really don't care about my locker. I just want to get out of here before anyone else shows up." Alison replied, implying she was uncomfortable knowing Noel was still around somewhere and would be in school with them everyday. "Can I come watch your practice tonight? I don't mean to be pushy but you deserve someone out in the stands cheering for you and I still want to be that person. Even when you go to Stanford." The blonde added, knowing that no matter where her future took her, she'd always stick by Emily and support her in everything she did.

The brunette bit softly on her lips and turned around and nodded. "Sure, let's go." She insisted. She opened the school doors for Alison and walked back to her car. After unlocking it and sitting in the front seat, Emily opened the window; starting to feel a little suffocated. Alison had never been this /clingy/ or /needy/ towards her, and it drove her absolutely crazy at times.

Alison looked over at Emily who seemed rather uncomfortable. She frowned slightly and placed her hand on the brunette's kneecap to get her attention. "Hey...Em. What's on your mind?" She asked in a voice barely above a whisper, her voice full of concern. Lately her emotions got the best of her and it was hard to keep up. She hated the way the pregnancy was already affecting her. "Damn hormones." She mumbled under her breath as she waited for Emily to reply.

"I'm uhm - just nervous for tonight. I really hope that I can swim this year, it'll be my last season with the Sharks, and it would be great to go out with a boom, you know? Coach has done so much for me..." Emily smirked and frowned at the same time; placing her hand over Alison's on her own kneecap. "You don't have to come watch you know. It'll be boring and long for no reason, you'd get bored." She added.

"Well okay, just call me after? I want to hear all about it cause I'm sure there's going to be good news. And if there is, I'm taking you out to celebrate tomorrow night, okay? You can pick anywhere." Alison spoke cheerfully, giving Emily the encouragement she knew she needed. "I believe in you, Em. Good luck tonight." She pulled out of the parking lot and headed back towards her house. "Hey, Emmy? Am I dropping you home now or are you coming over?"

"Drop me off at home? I have to prepare some stuff for the meet and talk to my parents, plus I promised I'd take them out for supper tonight." Emily smiled, buckling her seatbelt afterwards. She flicked on her sunglasses and let the wind flow through her hair. She turned to Alison and then whispered before she pulled into the brunette's parking lot. "I'll text you after practice." Emily leaned into her just a little bit, kissing the side of her lips, then she slid out of the car and ran inside to her parents.

"Okay, Em. I'll see you later. Show them what you've got, Killer." Alison winked playfully and waved as she made sure Emily had gotten into her house before backing out of the driveway. When she finally reached home, she was surprised to find her dad's car already parked in the garage. He was home early but for once Alison was happy he was back. She made her way inside and greeted Kenneth with a warm smile and tight hug.

The brunette dropped her stuff in her room and walked back downstairs to her parents. They questioned her about her schedule from school, and she handed them her class sheet. With a smile on her face, she told them that she could swim again this year, and boy was she excited. Emily hugged them both and remained in their embrace for a small moment, debating on whether or not she should tell them that she was speaking and sort of seeing Alison once more.

Alison met her dad's eyes and smiled brightly for the first time in a while in front of him. She showed him her class schedule and told him all about how well things were going between her and Emily in terms of getting back to where they were before. It was clear Kenneth was happy to hear that as well. The blonde sighed softly, wondering if she should spill the news of her pregnancy to him or stay quiet. Emily had forced Alison to let her pay the bill but still, the blonde knew her dad would have to know sooner or later.

After breaking the embrace from her parents and grabbing the car keys, handing them over to her dad, Emily walked outside and sat in the back seat of the car. She told them she'd pay for supper and after a few minutes of convincing them, they finally agreed. They headed to a small restaurant just outside of Rosewood and found a parking spot. They then walked in as a family and took their seats, menus in their hands.

Alison shook her head, deciding she wasn't ready to say anything. She actually wanted Emily by her side when she announced the pregnancy to her dad. But he offered to cook dinner while she went upstairs to set all her stuff down and change into something more comfy as lately Alison wasn't in much of a mood to stay dressed up when she was home. She agreed and quickly headed upstairs to drop off her purse and then flopped down on her bed for a few moments.

Emily ordered some fries and a veggie burger, not wanting to bulk up too much before a swim meet, especially the first one of the year. She handed the menu over to the waitress and then let her back fall to the booth, looking around at everyone. Few people were there as it was still early for dinner, though it was pretty full somehow since the place was small. She bit at her lip and turned to face her parents, having no idea what to say to them.

Alison slowly got up and changed into a pair of patterned leggings she'd never worn before and her favorite yellow tank top. She kicked her heels off and made her way downstairs. When she joined her dad at the table, she saw that he'd made her pasta and garlic bread, one of her favorite meals. She smiled sweetly and thanked him as she grabbed a piece of garlic bread and served herself some pasta.

The brunette ate her food slowly after her plate had arrived. After finishing, she ordered some chocolate cake for the three, eating slowly once that had arrived also. She paid for the bill and then walked to the car, her practice being in an hour. She wanted to pick up her swim stuff from home and drive herself. She knew that Alison might have been there or might not, but whichever; she was ready. After arriving at home and thanking her parents for driving, Emily picked up her backpack and took the keys to her car and quickly headed out.

Alison finally finished dinner. Afterwards she was left on her own, as her dad always kept busy with work no matter what time of day it was. She got up and got herself some ice cream, taking it upstairs to her room so she could go relax. The blonde headed up to her room and sat down on her bed. She picked up her phone and looked at time, knowing Emily would probably be heading to her swim meet soon. Alison wanted to go but she also knew she needed to give the brunette time to herself as well. She decided instead to text Emily. "Hey Killer, Break a leg! I know you can do it! -Ali xo"

Once Emily arrived to the school pool and changed into her swim gear, she checked her phone and smiled just a little bit once she saw that Alison had texted her. She replied with a smile on her face. "Thanks, text you later? Parents are out of town, I could drop by? Em." She then threw her phone in her locker and locked it, adjusting her swim cap and goggles as she walked to the pool and spoke to her coach.

Alison smiled at the text Emily had just sent back. The brunette wanted to spend time with her again and that was all she could ever hope for. "Sounds good. See you later. -Ali xo" She texted back and then set her phone on her nightstand, knowing it would be silent the rest of the night. She turned on her TV and flipped through the channels, looking for something to watch. Although the blonde felt exhausted for some reason and dozed off for a short while with the TV on.

Emily jumped into the pool and swam at her fastest rate without her shoulder aching or hurting. She swam her typical times and then stood out of the pool and faced her teammates, Paige included. Emily sighed and bit at her lip, remembering the last few confrontations that she'd had with her. After the news that Emily was going to start for the first competition, she couldn't have been more ecstatic, though team captain was to be voted between the girls.. and the choices were her and Paige.

Alison slept soundly, her body still recovering from all the nights she'd stayed awake or awoken from nightmares. A couple hours later, she finally woke up and checked the time. Emily would be over soon. She got up and made her way into the bathroom, brushing her teeth and then her hair. Afterwards, she washed her face and went back to lying down on her bed, waiting for Emily to come over.

"Coach wants a meeting with Paige and I. Ugh. See you soon. Em." She hit send and went through with the meeting. Once it was done, Emily headed to her locker once more and got changed, she let her hair fall down loosely over her shoulder. After she'd grabbed her stuff and sat in her car, she drove to Alison's house and parked on the side of the road. Without knocking, she headed upstairs and opened the door to Alison's room, seeing that the blonde had fallen asleep again. Emily let her bags drop to the ground carefully and closed the door, she then went and placed herself beside Alison, kissing the top of her forehead, not wanting to wake her.

"Okay. I'll see you soon. -Ali xo" Alison sent a simple text not wanting to seem overly paranoid or anything. But she still didn't trust Paige and definitely didn't like the idea of Emily and her being close. Although it wasn't her place to say so and she respected Emily's wishes enough to keep her mouth shut. She switched the TV channels once again until she found something to watch. Once she did, the blonde settled comfortably, laying in bed and watching for a while. A little bit later, her eyelids began to droop once again and soon she was fast asleep. She didn't even hear Emily enter but as soon as she felt the kiss on her forehead, she practically sensed Emily's presence. She rubbed her eyes and sat up slowly. "Em..you're here. Finally." Alison mumbled in a sleepy voice.

"Yeah, it ran late. Sorry. Just go back to sleep, okay? Relax, you need it." Emily slipped off her flats and let Alison relax. If the blonde wasn't so tired and hormonal, Emily would have discussed a few things with her, however, she just let it go for the night. Instead, she relaxed comfortably beside the blonde, looking at her as she sat up. "I'll stay the night if you want me to..." She added in a soft whisper, not wanting to speak too loudly.

"Yeah. Stay the night. Please." Alison whispered softly. She yawned once and then carefully climbed out of bed. "I need to change. I'll be back in a minute." The blonde headed into the bathroom after grabbing her pajamas. She quickly changed and made her way back into bed, lying down directly beside Emily. "Goodnight, Emmy." She whispered softly before managing to once again fall into a deep sleep.

"Goodnight." Emily turned around, her face to the wall, her back to Alison. The brunette fell asleep slowly, not dreaming of anything, she simply had nothing on her mind for once, and it surprised her. She shifted a bit in her sleep, her feet tangled with the blankets. It was nice and cool in Alison's room, and Emily loved sleeping when the air was fresh and when a breeze flowed through the environment.


End file.
